Arrival
by MyAlstroemerias
Summary: It's hard. He hasn't been on Earth in years or seen his family. He wants to be happy, but it's hard. His body isn't used to not being at war. It's hard enough getting to peace but for Lance it's harder. He has to get used to not being a prisoner. Hopefully being back home with family, his team, will help Lance cope with what happened in the darkness of space.
1. Chapter 1

He's finally home. The moment his feet touch the earth's surface he starts to run through the warm sand, leaving Blue behind. He's going home. He doesn't stop until he is at the gate of the house. It's been years since he has been home. What if his family moved? What if they were no longer here? All his worries slip away when he spots his Mother in the front tending to the garden. She hasn't changed at all these past years and she still takes care of his garden. That garden was his pride and joy. When he was little Lance and his mother would spend hours planning it all out, but they never really got around to planting it. Before he left for the Garrison he planted the garden in secret as a going away gift to his mother. He has to hold back his tears as he steps through the gate. They still haven't fixed it. It has the same loud squeak from when he first broke it while wrestling his brother in the front yard. He tenses up as she wipes her hands on her apron as she turns around. "Welcome home de-" She instantly drops her trowel and her eyes go wide. She looks him up and down; unable to believe her son is really standing in front of her. "Lance…?"

"Hi, Mama…" He no longer can hold back his tears. She runs at him her own tears forming as they fall into the grass. He never thought he would see her again. He thought he would die in a different galaxy before he ever got to see his mother again. Before he would ever get to step on earth again. He could live knowing he wouldn't have to see his classmates from school. The people who made his life hell. His family was the only thing that made him fight. Made him want to return to earth. Lance sits up and kisses his mother on the head. "I have so much to tell you." Carefully he helps her stands. He notices the grey streaks that had formed with age; he doesn't remember seeing them before he left. Must have been his siblings. Bastards could be so stressful. They sit on the front porch. Trying to figure out where he should start. What should he tell her? They lay in each other's arms for a bit longer. Until he is ready to tell his mother about that night at the garrison. About Voltron. About Coran and Allura. About his scars. About things no mother would want to know her child has been through. But she is happy now that her son is safe.

The gate squeaks and they look up. Oh. It's his father. The man drops his box and bolts forward, immediately recognizing Lance. They hug and his father won't let go. Lance is sure he doesn't want him to. He stays in the embrace, retelling his story. "Lance… I'm not saying I don't believe you but… you sound pretty crazy." Lance isn't surprised. If someone came up to him and started talking about robot lions he would think they got way too into anime. He would ask them what drugs are they on. But he isn't crazy. He's never watched anime. What he told them was all real and he knows _exactly_ how to make them believe him.

"I'll show you her…" Standing up he walks them to the backyard and stands proudly. In the sand stands Blue resting underneath the huge tree that separates them from the beach. His parents look at each other with wide eyes. There is no way they don't believe him now. He looks at his mother, who has this expression where you can tell something just clicked in her brain. Everything he told her is settling.

"You went t-"

"I went to space Mama. I saved the Universe." He holds her close as she begins to cry. He can only imagine what is going through her mind right now. He knows it must be bad but not as bad as he know. He's the one who fought in a war. It was him who assisted in keeping the Galra away from Earth. Keeping his family safe without them even knowing the danger they were in. The door to the house opens behind them. There stands a small boy. Dusted in freckles. Hair curling at the ends. Beautiful blue eyes that matched his own. And to think Lance thought he ran out of tears, they well up in his eyes at the sight. His little brother has grown so much. He gives Lance a weird look and that just breaks his heart.

"Mama who is that..?" Lance frowns and wipes his tears. He shakes his head and stares at the younger boy. Waiting. Hoping that somewhere in his heart he remembers Lance. He hoped his family hadn't forgotten about him or thought he was dead. He wouldn't blame them. He suddenly disappeared and didn't come back until years passed. But he hoped. That they would have faith that he would be strong and stay alive. "Is that Lance…?" A soft _Lance is home?_ Is heard from inside alongside a pitter pattering of feet. Suddenly he is being tackled by two children into the grass. His baby sister. Oh how they have both grown. He rubs their backs and starts tickling both of them. The sound of laughter fills his heart. Slowly being surrounded by his family again. They ask him what happened. How one day they had the garrison on their porch saying he was missing. How they offered them money to keep quiet about it. How before their grandparents died that they would go to church and pray that he was safe. _Oh._ His grandparents passed away. That hurts. He didn't get to say goodbye to them. He loves his- _loved_ his grandparents as stubborn as they could be.

They go inside and start setting up the table. Dinner will take some time to make. He knows that. When they would get home from school and set the table right away so when their mother was done everyone could eat right away. It made sense it was a lot of food to cook to fill all their mouths. His younger brother, Leo, sets the table. Lance counts the plates. Seven plates. "Marquis still lives here… or...?" His mother nods and kisses his cheek. He helps out with cooking. Trying to convince his mother not to make so much. But Lance knows better. She is celebrating. Celebrating his safety. His return. Celebrating his life. He knows there will be leftovers for a week.

Once the table is set Leo comes in constantly pulling at Lance's arm. "Come on Lance, how much longer do I need to wait to know what happened? I know you told Mama and Papa!" Lance snorts and picks the boy up. Ruffling his hair obnoxiously making Leo thrash around. He feels at home.

"Wait until everyone is home. I don't want to constantly repeat myself." Is his excuse. But he just needs to figure out what to tell them all. There was so much that happened. He didn't know where to start. "Now come on you know no kids in the kitchen when Mama is cooking." Lance ushers the kids out of the kitchen. Leo glares and sits at the table waiting. The front door opens and footsteps approach lance hears Leo yells at someone for stealing his water then the sound of shattering glass.

"Lance…?" Lance smiles and grabs the broom cleaning up his mess trying to play it cool. As if he doesn't want to just jump into his brother's arms. To tackle him to the ground and laugh like they used to.

"Hi Marq." He drops the broom as his eldest brother, Marquis, wraps his arms around him. He can feel his shirt start to dampen he shuts his eyes and squeezes Marquis close. He has never seen him cry before. The idea makes his chest hurt. "I'm home…" He looks over his shoulder and waves at the woman walking into the room. His sister in law. After Marquis let go Lance moves to help put dinner on the table. They set it down and serve each other. Lance's mother takes the time to say grace; it's longer than he remembers. But he understands. After she is done Leo slams his hands on the table.

"So are you going to tell us what happened or not?!" His mother scolds him but Lance says its okay he looks at his food and takes a few mouth fulls. The first Earth meal in years. He wonders how his body will react to it. So used to only eating food goo and Arusian fruits. Lance takes a deep breath and tells them. Tells them about sneaking out of the Garrison to see what Keith was doing despite the school going on lockdown. Saving Shiro and running away. About Blue and finding the other Lions. He tells them about their fights. The planets and creatures they met. Leo didn't believe him but his little sister Anna did. He could she did with that look in her eye. Admiring her older brother. He cuts off his story and drags Leo outside pointing at Blue like he did with his parents. He sure believes him now. They go back inside and he tells them about Voltron. About Zarkon. About the war and about saving the Universe. Abou-

He gets cut off by a knocking on the door. Lance's mother gets up to check who it is. Lance looks over as she opens the door. He almost falls out of his chair trying to get up and over there. "Mama let him in- Leo grab another plate and chair." He walks to the door putting a hand on his mother's shoulder. "This is Keith."

Keith bows his head politely, and a bit awkwardly, as he steps inside. He grabs Lance's wrist and just stares at him for a moment. Lance smiles and shakes his head leading Keith into the dining room serving him up a plate of food. They keep eating. Anna asks Keith a handful of questions. Lance looks up at his mother who is just smiling at him. He smiles back as his mother reached over, gently rubbing his cheek with her thumb. "My pretty blue boy...Oh how I've missed you." Lance's stomach immediately drops and tightens. His sight is blurry from the tears that have started to form in his eyes. His head is spinning and everything hurts. Why did she have to call him _that?_ Before he knows it Keith is wiping his mouth and there's vomit on his lap. His own vomit. He can't stop crying. His shoulders shake as he looks at Keith.

"That's what _he_ called me…"

All eyes are on Lance's at this point. Lance and Keith. Keith helps clean up lance before asking to be lead to the bathroom. He picks up Lance, letting him hide his face on his shoulder to keep the others from seeing him cry, as he follows his mother. He sits Lance on the toilet seat and wipes his face. He starts filling up the tub with a bit of a struggle. He grabs the towel from Lance's mother and holds it up at Lance's waist as he gets undressed; knowing at a time like this Lance isn't going to want to be seen completely naked. Once he is nude Keith wraps the towel around him, tying it in the back. Lance takes a seat in the warm water. Curling his legs up to his chest as Keith helps him bathe. Letting the other man scrub him down as he sobs. Feeling so pathetic that he couldn't hold everything in in front of his family. Feeling like garbage. So useless that Keith has to bathe him _again._ Lance looks up and his mother is standing there. Watching with her hand over her mouth. Worried for her son. Lance frowns and whispers something into Keith's ear

Keith stands up walking to the door. "Sorry...He wants me to shut the door." Shutting the door he looks away then back at Lance sitting on the edge of the tub. Gently wiping his tears away in silence. Lance does not want his family seeing him like this.

After cleaning him up Keith dries him off. Sitting him back on the toilet as he goes to step out. To get him clothes. He bumps into Lance's mother, who is already a step ahead of him with a set of clothes in her hands. She hands him the clothes and Keith ushers back to the bathroom helping Lance get dressed. He carries the crying man to his bedroom with guidance from his mother and lays him in bed. Rubbing his back until Lance falls asleep. Keith frowns and pulls a blanket over his shoulder. Slipping out of the bedroom and down the stairs to the front door. He has to check on Red. As he is stepping out of the front door his wrist is grabbed by Lance's mother. "Mrs. McClain-"

"What happened to Lance? Why...Why did he react like that?"

Keith stares at her for a moment. Fidgeting. Not knowing what to say. He's worked so hard trying to build a trust with Lance. He isn't going to ruin that anytime soon and that's that there is barely any trust there in the first place. He knows that he knows more than Lance's family with the way she asked. He knows Lance is close with his family. He thought he would have told them. "I thought he told you already. He looked like he cried...It's not my story to tell. Wait until he wakes up." He bows his head politely and steps out the door. Walking out to his own lion. He doesn't know what to do. Where to go. He isn't like the others. He doesn't have a family to return to. He has nowhere to go. Taking a deep breath he gets inside Red, taking a seat in the pilot chair kicking his legs up as the chair lays back. He'll sleep here for the night…

* * *

Lance wakes up early. He has to check something. He sneaks out the house. Not even bothering to put on his shoes. He is just going down the street. He bites his lip as he stands outside a house. The paint is different. It's an ugly green. Not its usual orange...Yellow is nowhere to be spotted. Hunk didn't come home? He turns around and heads back home. He has no idea where everyone is. He just wants his best friend. Correction. He _needs_ his best friend. From where he is standing he can see Red and Blue in his yard. They have to turn their protection settings on before someone says something and calls the cops on them. He keeps on walking. Until he is standing in front of the two lions. Waiting. Wondering if Keith is awake in there for not. Oh he is. Keith is walking towards him. Lance's feet walk ahead of his brain and he just hugs Keith tightly. "Where is everyone…?"

He wants to find everyone. He wants to find Hunk. Pidge and Shiro too. He knows where Allura and Coran are but he doesn't want to leave earth. To go back to Arus isn't on his to do list. Not anytime soon that is. Keith sighs and rubs his back slowly. Noises can be heard coming from inside the house. They're making breakfast. Lance stays in Keith arms for a bit longer before pulling back. Leading his teammate inside. There's a huge spread on the table. Lance looks at Keith when he hears Keith chuckle. "Is every meal like this?" Lance shakes his head. Lance moves over to kiss his mother on the cheek whispering a good morning. They take a seat at the table beside a now sleeping Anna, her face smashed into her plate. Lance rubs at his eyes and serves himself and then Keith. "I can serve myself Lance..."

"I know what Mama makes best." He smiles tiredly. Eyes still puffy and red from crying last night. Keith shoves him a bit staring at his huge plate.

"But you served me everything." That makes Mrs. McClain laugh.

"I know." Keith rolls his eyes and they begin eating. As they eat everyone starts to leave. They have to go to school. Leo hugs him goodbye and Anna found her way back to her room for her grade has off for testing. Marquis wakes up a bit later and sits with them until he has to leave for work. He ruffles Lance's hair and smiles. Everything is really sinking it. He's home now. Back with the people who love him. His sister in law, Maria, comes down and steals his muffin before running out the door only to get chased by Lance. "Get your own breakfast you rich _Gringa_!" She laughs and flips him off getting into her car.

Lance smiles and goes back to the table. Finishing up his breakfast. He looks around. His father left while he was asleep he knows that. It's just him his mother and Keith. His mother sits beside him. Frowning. " _Mi Chiquitico..._ I think we need to talk." Lance tenses up and looks at Keith. Not knowing what to do. He knows his mother wants to know why he puked. Why he cried. Why he asked Keith to shut the door while he was bathing. This is his mother. He used to poop in the bathroom while she was getting ready. This woman is the person who is closest to him. Right before Hunk. Coran was the one who reminded him so much of his mother. The one who made being so far from home bearable.

"Where do I start Mama..?"

"From the beginning. I want to know the complete truth..." Keith holds his hand. Squeezing it. Trying to comfort him. Making what he was about to say a bit easier.


	2. Chapter 2

Things were supposed to be getting better. After months of fighting they finally came to terms with the Galra army. Their ruler, Prince Lotor, had signed a peace treaty with Allura and they were working together to help clean up the other planets. The space pollution from all the fighting. They were helping the people of the galaxies rehabilitate their homes. Things _were_ getting better. Key word. Were. Past tense. _Someone_ just had to break the treaty. A pompous bloodthirsty galran bastard. Lotor had attacked another planet and thought he would get away with it. He wouldn't. Not with the Paladins of Voltron back together. They were back at war. Every Time they would get closer and closer to winning but somehow Lotor always had another trick up his sleeve. They were back at the castle. It was dark and Lance was on guard duty on the outside. Shiro was on guard duty on the inside. He had his Bayard at his side. Ready to shoot at any point. Things were getting crazy. They had to keep the Lions safe. They didn't want a repeat of the war with Zarkon. With the Galra trying to steal the black lion. Shiro disappeared. It was scary. They didn't form Voltron without him. They had to fight with just their lions and their fists. Until they got the help of the rebellion. Of Shiro and Matt.

Lance was pacing around the outside of the castle when there was a bag over his head. He couldn't see anything so he was just shooting. They were under attack. He was under attack. He felt his neck snap back and everything went fuzzy.

* * *

The first time he woke up, he couldn't see anything. He was in a tight spot and he couldn't move. But his first instinct was to start thrashing around. To get out. Tell the team what's going on. But he got shot with something and things got fuzzy again.

The second time he woke up his body was sore and the space was even tighter. He couldn't move at all. He rocked back and forth knocking whatever cage he was in over. He knocked his head and laid there. Waiting. Planning on attacking the second he would get out of it. He shifts a bit and realizes that's not the best idea. That would get him killed. He has no armor on. Whoever kidnapped him too it all off. Which means his Bayard must be lost too.

The third time he woke up was after he ended up falling asleep in his cage. He knew he was in his final destination because he could see. There was a lamp. He spots a dark figure. They kicked his cage and knocked him over. Everything hurt. He had no idea where he was. He went to shout but someone cut him off. "Be gentle, I break my toys not you." Lance let out a growl he could tell who that other figure was in the doorway just by his voice. _Lotor._ He knew who kidnapped and with all the attacks that happened he knew that the others would assume his disappearance had to be connected to the Galran prince. He would have to be patient. Lance grew up in a house full of ten people that only had one bathroom. He could be patient.

Lotor opened the cage and the first Lance did was lunge at him. Quick to take Lotor's knife and bring it to his throat ready to kill him on the spot. "Where the hell did you take me you prick?" He yelled at him and instantly regrets it. He should have killed him first and then asked the guards later or found out that information himself. One of the guards grabbed him by the hair and snapped his head back. He had been knocked unconscious way too many times in one night. Well he hoped it had been only one night.

Lance opened his eyes and tried to sit up once he noticed he was no longer in a cage, but instantly started choking violently. He laid back. It is soft. He's chained up on a bed...There was a collar on his throat. That's what choked him. He looked around and spotted Lotor standing in the doorway. Arms crossed over his chest. "Finally you woke up, I thought he killed you. It would have been such a waste." Slowly he had started to walk towards lance. Lifting a finger at a time as he spoke. "I have very strict rules here. Break them and you'll wish you were dead. When you disobey me you will go one shift without eating. No one but I can touch you, without my permission that is." Lotor sat down beside him causing Lance to glare at him. "You will always be watched. You will always be chained up. I can do whatever I want to you-" He grabbed Lance by the chin making him look up at him. Faces very close. "-and you get one request."

Lance rolled his eyes and spat in his face. "Fucking die." Lotor was fast to pin him down by his throat on the bed and with his other hand he forced it in Lance's pants. Lance tensed up instantly. Lotor didn't move. He only gave Lance a stare of confusion.

"You don't have a phallus...Are all male humans like this?" Lance curled up in a ball once Lotor removed his hand. Covering himself. Lotor sighs and grabs him by the hair forcing him to look at him again. "Answer me right now before you regret it."

"No! No…Some have one. Some don't...Girls are the same. Some have one some don't. It's pretty rare to be like us." Lotor smirked and let him go making Lance fall back onto the mattress. He caressed his cheek and then stepped back,

"My rare pretty blue boy… Oh I'll have lots of fun with you."

* * *

On his first day he was left alone, all chained up on the bed. They had given him nothing to eat yet. He wasn't sure if he was going to be fed. He knew nothing about what Galra eat. Maybe they don't eat and think humans don't either. He knew what was happening. They were trying to break him. He heard Lotor outside the room talking to the guards calling him his pet. He wasn't some horse that needed to be broken. He knew he could do this. Lance believed the others would save him. He could live with whatever torture they would throw at him. Lance finally got fed late at night and it was only one meal a day.

It lasted a week

He would find himself sleeping the day away. Waiting. Hoping the others would notice he was gone. That they would come to save him before the real torture began. Before all the bad would happen. Before his life was ruined.

Lotor had started to come into the room. He had taken over feeding Lance, using that time to ask Lance questions. Lance refused to answer any questions about Voltron. Only answering what he wanted to. Things about himself. Stupid questions. Anything to get Lotor to leave him. Scared to repeat the first night he was here. He wasn't surprised Lotor would stoop to such a low level but damn did it work to get him to talk. Lotor never stayed for long. He would come to talk to Lance for a bit, feed him, talk some more, then leave. "Why are you doing this?"

That made Lotor laugh. "If you don't play with your pets they die. And I can't have my pretty doll dying on me. What fun would that be?" With that Lotor ruffled his hair only to cringe right after. "You smell like a corpse. You need to bathe." Lotor broke the chain that connected the collar on Lance's throat to the bed with his bare hands. Dragging lance out of the room and to somewhere else. One second he was being dragged the next Lotor was trying to take Lance's clothes off. Lance couldn't help it. He panicked and thrashed around. Lotor obviously didn't like that so he grabbed Lance by the hair and slammed his face on the cold floor.

"I-I can bathe myself...You can watch but please...I can bathe myself." He squeaked out. Wincing. All curled up holding his clothes on. He practically begged Lotor. He felt so pitiful. His hatred for his body was getting in the way of him thinking straight. Lotor sighed and locked the room's door sitting back down on a stool. Watching Lance strip with his back towards the prince. He slipped into the large tub that took up half the room. As Lance looked at it he guessed it could comfortable fit at least 13 people in it. The water felt nice. He washed the grime off his skin as Lotor joined him in the tub but on the farther side of it. After he washed himself he sat in the water. He knew the door was locked. That he was naked. That he would get himself killed if he tried to escape now. Now was not the time.

Lotor was staring at him. The man stood up and left the room. Of course not without locking the door behind him, smirking. When he returned he was clothed and he had a towel around his shoulders. Holding a set of clothes. "Get up." He did. Lotor began drying Lance off despite his pleas to let him do it himself. He made Lance get dressed having handed him a tunic and shorts. It was better than nothing. Lance expected to be put back in the clothes he was kidnapped in. Lotor dragged him back to the room. Chaining him up. Leaving him alone. All his life he was surrounded by people. He could never get used to being alone here in the Galran castle. It was hard enough getting used to it in the castle of lions. But at least there he had the team. He was worried he heard guards talking about the war. If they haven't noticed he is gone they'll notice soon. They can't form Voltron without him. It had only been a week since he was kidnapped he could do it. He had to wait.

* * *

Every day in the castle was so quiet. They were obviously up to something. The only noises Lance ever heard were footsteps and the guards outside the room greeting their prince. If lance never missed his family. He sure missed them then. Hoping the team gets him so he can kick ass and stop this once and for all. Scared that if they were to get defeated what would Lotor do to earth? To his family. All he could do was think back to his mother and pray that this would be over soon. He prayed every night. It helped the time go away. Day by day. Weeks passed. Lance couldn't help but start giving up there was no saving him. Lance is going to die here.

Things started to change; Lotor began to stop by more. He was allowed to eat more than one meal a day. Lotor spoiled only his favorite pets. He would read to him. He moved the room he was chained in to Lotor's personal room. It was so large. The bed was so soft and more than large enough for the two of them Whenever Lotor leaves Lance was no longer alone. He had a maid to accompany him. They fed him whenever Lotor was too busy giving orders to feed lance himself. The maids gave him someone to talk to even if they didn't respond back. They kept him from going crazy. Every day there was a different maid. Each one treated him kindly. He wondered if they did it out of pity or if they did it because they too were scared of Lotor. He doubted any of them actually cared for him, He was just some human. He has been there for so long. It's been months since he was taken here. There hasn't been an attack on the castle. The team really doesn't know where his was.


	3. Chapter 3

Lance officially had no idea how long he had been there at this point. The only reason he knew it's been so long was because of the length of his hair. It started to curl up at the ends. He could even push some of it back behind his ear. A lot had changed about Lance. He started to gain weight. He never ate so much when he was with the team. Lotor had been feeding him more. He got solid meals three times in a day. He could never finish it so he would share whatever he didn't finish with the maids. Or sometimes even the guards. But everyone had gone to their rooms. It was late. All he had was that one lamp but it was off and too far away for him to reach. Lotor did say he would give him a longer chain so he could use the bathroom without having to call someone to assist him at night. Not wanting to repeat the week before when he had an accident. He was alone in the dark. He waited in the room. Hungry.

It took sometime but Lotor did come back. He always did. Without greeting Lance he laid on the bed. Making Lance cringe. Something smelled. Nunvil? That explained it. Lotor sat up tiredly and started peeling Lance's shorts off. In a fit of panic Lance squirmed around. He kicked at the prince. Lotor grabbed at his legs but that didn't stop Lance. He knew what was happening and he was going to try and stop it from happening until, at least Lance hoped, he would give up. He didn't. He grabbed Lance by the throat and choked him. Lance expected there to be a bruise dark and deep by the morning. It was hard to breathe. His legs fell and his hands flew up scratching at Lotor's hands. Crying. Scared. "I treated you well-" he slapped Lance and brought their faces close together glaring at the human. "-Try to enjoy it. You have no reason to say no. If you _really_ want to stop. I will. You aren't the only beautiful thing here."

Lotor peeled Lance's hands away and chained them to the headboard. Lance looked away and shut his eyes. Shaking. His wrists already hurt at Lotor ripped his clothes to shreds. Leaving him bare. The prince stopped. Just looking at him. Lance opened his eyes and bit his lip. "My pretty blue boy has been damaged already?" He slowly dragged a finger up his thigh. He felt up the damaged skin. The scars from fights. Accidents. _Himself._ Lance continued to squirm around on the bed. Wanting to get away. He let out a scream as Lotor dug his nails into his side. Drawing blood. He was quick to shut his legs. The tears wouldn't stop. "You are mine, accept it." Lance couldn't help but stare as Lotor began taking his own clothes off. His body lying limp. Lotor pressed down against Lance, chuckling in his ear. As if he had won. He had. Lance was too scared to move. He simply kept his head turned away. Trying to not look at what was happening to him. Trying to ignore the pain in his abdomen as Lotor pressed two fingers into him. Ignoring the sigh and the comments. The "why are humans so dry inside." Or the "You just had to make things more difficult." Ignoring his tears and the pain of Lotor thrusting into him. Taking him.

Everything hurt.

Everything was slipping away. He knew he had no control over anything anymore. The only way he would get out of this is if he died.

Everything happened so fast. Before he knew it Lotor was laying at his side. There was a mess between his legs. Dammit. Lotor came inside him. All he could think about was the team. About Keith. Keith being half-Galra. What if he got pregnant? What if the team found him pregnant? They would think he was a freak. He curled up the second Lotor let his wrists go. Crying himself to sleep.

When Lance opened his eyes Lotor was at his side, as if he was waiting for him to wake up. Lance looked down at his lap and just vomited. It wasn't a nightmare. It really happened. Lotor came inside him and it was still there. Lotor backed away. Sighing. He unchained Lance with an unknown gentleness and picked him up. Carrying him to the bathroom. Laying him in the warm water. Lance couldn't help the tears. So much fear instilled in him because of the previous night. Lotor sighed and cupped his cheeks. Wiping the tears away. He bathed Lance, pleased that Lance didn't try to stop him. To stop his fingers from going into him. Scrapping out everything from between his legs. He stayed there lying in the tub with his back against Lotor's chest. Covering his face as he felt Lotor fingering him now out of his own pleasure. As he lifted Lance out of the tub. Pressing him against the bathroom floor. Turning him around, forcing him to look at him as Lotor pressed his tongue into his vagina. Making Lance choke out a sob. Lotor frowned against his clit and sits up grabbing his chin. "Was it that bad? Teach me how to make you enjoy it too." He positioned himself up to Lance. Making the human ride him keeping him there even when the door opened. A guard walked in.

"My lord, you are needed in the command room. Haggar requests your presence." Sighing Lotor pushed the boy to the side. Putting his own clothes on before he wraps a towel around Lance. He threw him over his shoulder and carried him to an open room where several faces turned to them. Lance curled up as he was dropped under the glass table. He looked over and at the door, wondering if he could make a run for it. When he looked back Lotor's cock was in his face. He shuffled back only to be grabbed by the hair making him go on his knees, getting it thrusted into his mouth. It's weird and scary. It's not human that's for sure. It hurt his jaw. He tried to pull back. Squirming. Lotor thrusted into him without a skip in his step. Commanding the army as if it was nothing. Lance shut his eyes and he felt his towel fall. He went to grab it. To cover up but Lotor stepped on it and slid it away. Lance whimpered as he could feel all the eyes on him. The tears in his eyes fell and he pulled back the second Lotor let his head go. Only to get hit in the face with his come. His head fell. Not wanting to be seen crying. He felt so gross. He felt like dying.

Lance felt like forever had passed before Lotor and Lance finally left the command room. Lotor carried him to the bedroom and laid him down. He handed him some fresh clothes and chained him back up. Leaving him alone in the room. He curls up under the blankets. A part of him feeling happy the team has forgotten about him. He didn't want them ever finding out what is happening to him here. He hoped it would all be over fast. He didn't know how much longer he could handle it. He wanted to be safe. He wanted to be home.

But he wasn't going home. He probably would never get home. He fully believed that as time continued to go on

Things had begun to become part of a routine here in the castle. He would wake up, get fed, be alone, get fed, have sex, take a bath, fall asleep, then repeat. Day after day. It had become normal for Lance. Time was passing faster like this. He knew the day was ending when Lotor would take him. Lance continued to use his hair as a way of telling how much time had passed. It was already down to his shoulders. He wasn't used to it being long. It was never long. Even before he came out he had his choppy short hair. That day when he woke up he saw Lotor with a few maids around him, as if he was struggling to get his hair done, he had too much pride to ask the maids for help. Just like Anna. Lance sighed and sat up on the bed. "Oh come here, I'll handle it." Despite the situation he was in Lance was Lance. It was the same way the paladins would remind him of his family. Walking around with stains on their clothes. Lance would get frustrated and peel the clothes off whoever it was to wash the stain off.

The look Lotor gave him made him bite his tongue. Scared. The prince sat in front of him. "Let's see how talented my blue boy is…" Lance nodded and leaned forward as much as he could. Braiding the long white hair. It's a Dutch braid, it's been so long since he has made one. He is a bit rusty but it looks good. Lotor stood up and began examining Lance's work. He turned around and grabbed Lance by the chin. Smiling. He looks over at the maids. "Give us a moment alone." Lance couldn't help but sigh. He just woke up couldn't sex wait? Besides he knew today was a big day according to Lotor. They were having guest over for a meal. Lance pushed his shorts down knowing they would get torn apart if he didn't do it before Lotor got on top of him. And they were at it again. There was this gentleness to it. Lotor kept praising him. Lance had no idea how to feel about it. Even if his body had started to like the way it felt it was still wrong. He didn't want any of it. He wasn't actually enjoying it. It was just the way his body reacts to the touch.

Lotor finished and pulled his pants up as he left the room leaving Lance all alone. He hated the feeling between his legs. The Galra have so much advanced technology how come they don't know how to use a condom? Lotor left without feeding Lance. He was hungry. He had been a good pet what did he do wrong this ti-

Wait what?

He did not just think that. He was not a pet. He had to stay strong, play along with Lotor's game and wait. And wait he did. He watched the lamp until his eyes grew heavy. Napping the time away.

Maybe someone would save him while he slept.

Lance woke up when someone began shaking his shoulders. He whined and sat up slowly, something he learned to do to make sure he wouldn't choke the second he woke up every day. With the amount of light in the room he could tell not a lot of time had passed since he had fallen asleep. He rubs his eyes and then his throat. The maid in front of him had taken the chains off and handed him new clothes. "Prince Lotor, is summoning you." She turned her back and stood at the door. Giving him room to get changed. The clothes are something he would see Lotor wear. Oh. The guests must still be here if Lotor wants him at his side and dressed so well. The Maid guided him to the dining hall. Lance stood in the door. Fidgeting. "My lord." Lotor stood and smiled at Lance. The prince walked over and gently took his hand walking him to an empty seat.

"This is Lance, my human I have told you about." Lance looked up and bowed his head politely. Scared if he didn't act accordingly he would get punished. Lotor served Lance a large plate of food as he spoke to the guest. They were generals and sergeants of his army. That came to discuss their progress on the war. Lance felt his throat as he ate. Everything is gone. He wanted to run off and find a way to escape. But he knew better. He knew it was all a test. Lance's head would constantly shoot up any time his name would get mentioned. They would call him a _she_ something Lance hadn't heard in such a long time. "No no no, my blue boy come here-" and he did. He stood up and moved to stand at Lotor's side only to get pressed roughly to the table. Knocking a plate to the ground, shattering it completely. Lotor pulled his bottoms down and spread his legs on the table. Lance's eyes widened and went to cover himself up but Lotor pinned him down. "Humans can be odd. Despite not having a phallus Lance is still a boy." Lotor pulled him off the table and helped him dress sitting Lance on his lap as they ate.

Despite the roughness of what had happened moments ago Lotor was being so unnaturally kind to Lance. About Lance. Bragging to the others about him. How beautiful he is. How he is a good pet. His favorite pet. He shows off his hair and gives Lance all of the credit he deserves for his hard work. He talks about how smart the human is. _How sweet he sounds beneath him._ "My beautiful rare blue boy." He kissed Lance. The time is spent eating. Lance feeding Lotor and vice versa. When they have stopped eating Lance and Lotor lead the others to the rooms they would be staying in. Lotor dropped Lance off in their shared bedroom.

Of course he was alone again.

Lance waited to patiently in the bed. Lotor came back shortly after he got comfortable in bed. The prince laid with him. Wrapping his arms around Lance. "You were so good today, I'm so proud of you." Lotor ran his fingers through Lance's hair. Scratching at his scalp. Whispering sweet nothings in his ears. Making Lance feel…

Good.

Lotor pressed their lips together and moved down. Praising him with every gentle kiss. The chills that ran down his spine went straight down as Lotor kissed at his thighs. Marking him up. Feeling so nice. He was genuinely enjoying it. He was leaning into touches because he wanted to. Ignorant to the fact that this was Lotor breaking him. His mind hazy with bliss. Losing himself. No longer feeling scared. Feeling something else. Something strange. Feeling better...Than his teammates had made him feel. Whenever Lotor showed up it's because he wanted to show up, not because he had to like the others. Lance sat up when he felt Lotor's lips against his crotch. Licking and sucking. Making Lance's face heat up. Making Lance melt beneath him. With his fingers inside him. Moving around. Smirking against the wet folds as he heard Lance moan loudly. Not his usual muffled noise he would make when he covered his mouth. The way Lotor rolled Lance over and Lance wrapped his legs around the prince. Keeping him close.

Their lips tangled together and Lance's toes would curl up anytime chills would run down his spine. Lotor would kiss and bite at his neck. Rolling their hips into each other. A warm feeling pooled up in his stomach. This was it. He actually came in the first time since he was brought here.

Forgetting everything. For that night was the nicest he felt since he left earth.

They laid in each other's arms for a while before Lotor took Lance to the bathroom. Washing him up. Being kind and gentle. Having Lance face him as they stood in the shower. Washing his hair. Kissing his cheeks. Taking him against the wall again. Lotor moved to the tub afterwards. Lance sat behind him, brushing the knots out of his hair. Lotor turned around and rested his head on Lance's lap. Rubbing the skin. "Lance...Would you like to stay here? Stay with me?" Lance looked down. Why did he smile? Why did he tell Lotor yes? Lotor stood up and kissed his lips. Walking with Lance to the bedroom. Dressing him. Lying down in each other's arms once again. "Pretty boy, would you like to come watch me play a game? It's very fun. We play it to get rid of the _mess_ in the castle." He looked up and nods. Nuzzling into his skin. Finding it so easy to fall asleep like this.

In the morning Lance was prepped to go to the _game_ that Lotor told him about. He was dressed in a nice tunic and he tied his hair into a small ponytail. It barely stayed up. One of the maids brought Lance to the arena and sat with him in the front seat. Holding his hand as if she was nervous about something. He squeezed back trying to comfort her in whatever was bothering her. They waited and when the whole arena started to cheer Lance knew he should clap too. So he did, and made his applause louder when he spotted Lotor walking in. A large group of others join in where Lotor stood. Each at a different entrance. The bell goes off and-

Lance instantly felt like vomiting the second blood was splattered in front of him. _This_ was the game. It was a killing game. He squeezed the maid's hand tightly. Now he knew why she was so nervous. She didn't want to watch this either. Lance tried to keep his eyes away but a fear raked his body and made him watch the whole game until everyone was dead except Lotor. Scared Lotor would yell at him for not paying attention. He watched Lotor kill thirty of their prisoners. Before he knew it Lotor was in front of him. Wiping his face clean with a towel. Walking Lance to the bathroom. Making him bathe with him. The water became red with the diluted blood. Lance sat there in silence. So scared. Lotor grabbed him by the chin and wiped his cheeks. Oh. He was crying. "My pretty blue boy, what is wrong? Did you not have fun?"

"I don't want to die. If you are going to kill me please make it painless." The prince frowned at hearing this and stood up. Bringing Lance to bed. Lotor was tired. They were going to nap.

"You will not be killed. You will be mine forever; we will rule all of the cosmos together." The prince dressed Lance and laid down beside the human. "Tomorrow you will be getting a tracker inserted, this way you can walk around freely. You can come visit me whenever you please. We can fuck whenever you like if that is what you want." He smirked and kissed his lips lying down. Lance nodded and relaxed in his arms. That'll be nice. He won't be as bored. He can explore the castle. Give him something to do so he wouldn't have to sleep the days away. He could do whatever he pleased. Lance began to look forward to the next day. The procedure was quick. It was just injected into his arm. The whole time Lance watched Lotor. Wondering still, why was the prince treating him so well?


	4. Chapter 4

Things have become blurry. His mind is going. By the look of his hair Lance has been here for several months. He had started to forget what his purpose was. When did he get kidnapped? Was he even kidnapped? It was his first day without being chained up. He won't be chained up ever again. He put his tunic on and followed Lotor wherever he went, having felt dependent on him. Following the prince like a lost puppy. Holding his hand along the way. He joined him in meeting, in every meal; everything Lotor did Lance was there to accompany him. Lotor would always find a way to touch him. Slipping his hand under the table and into Lance's shorts. He would sometimes knock things over knowing Lance would go to pick it up so he could get Lance to go down on him. Now that Lance was allowed anywhere and everywhere, Lotor found new places to bend Lance over and take him. It was when they were eating in the dining hall when Lotor leaned over kissing Lance.

Lance has grown used to their relationship now, he knew what this meant. He put his fork down and started peeling his tunic off. Lotor was quick to push him down. Keeping their lips together. He pressed his fingers into Lance and looked down. He backed away and Lance looked down. A wave of relief passed over him. Thank goodness. He was bleeding. He wasn't pregnant. He knew despite starting testosterone back on earth that there was still the chance he would get pregnant. His period was rare and whenever he did get it he hated himself. This was the only time getting his period was a good thing. He does not want to get pregnant. "It's normal… Don't worry we can continue." Lotor nodded and pressed his mouth down to his thighs. And continued pressing his fingers into him. They have stopped caring. Continuing even if a maid walks in.

He felt safe there. In the castle he would walk around with a maid or a guard and talk. Some of them were nice to him, genuinely nice too not like the kindness he received from others because Lotor told them to respect Lance. Even one of the maids called him 'My Lord' the one who was with him normally. From his room, from the arena. His favorite. He could tell with her she was in the same situation. Taken. She feared the castle. But when she was around Lance she was calm. He liked her a lot. She kept him company whenever Lotor was too busy for Lance to stay at his side.

That day she was showing him around the castle. To the maids chambers. All the maids were so surprised to see Lance in their part of the castle. Lance took a seat in one of their chair and they all just talked. Gossiping for a good hour. Making Lance feel nice. Feel welcome. Like a prince. A good prince. He learned that the Galra really don't age after they reach a certain age. This makes sense. Zarkon ruled for ten thousand years. He learns their names. They all have the same hairstyle and Lance offered to fix it. They circled around him and he gave them different braids. Some had buns and cute ponytails. Lotor walked in on it and smiled. Kissing him on the lips. "Someone has been working hard." He bows his head politely waving goodbye as Lotor drags him away. Lotor brought him outside the castle to a separate building. "You know...My mother was from Altea. When she had me she died and left me this. A garden of her favorite plants. I trust you now to take care of them." Lance looked up and over at him. Wrapping his arms around him as they walked into the building. It was a green house. So many plants. Plants he never saw before. Something he could take care of. Lotor gave him a gift that meant a lot to him, making it mean a lot to Lance as well.

Lance found himself constantly coming to the greenhouse with Lotor. Wanting to learn more about these plants. He would collect the seeds and put them in his pockets. Taking them back to the room. Whenever Lotor couldn't join him one of the guards would. They would tell him stories. A story about how whenever Prince Lotor would throw a tantrum they would find him asleep in the greenhouse. Sometimes it was over the dumbest things like a maid took away his fake sword. It made Lance laugh only to turn around fast when he heard someone clear their throat. It was Lotor. He grabbed Lance by the hand and dragged him out. To a new room. One he hadn't seen yet. Lotor slammed the door shut and growled at Lance. Making the human tense up. Instantly scared. Reminded of the first night they had sex. No the first night Lance was raped. Yes everything he began to forget came back. How he doesn't want to be here even if everyone treated him kindly. Lotor began to choke Lance and ripped his clothes off. All the seeds flying everywhere. He pinned him down and took him. Violently. Everything hurt. He was so scared. He cried the whole time. There was no enjoying this. He could feel his insides ripping as Lotor thrusted into his ass. No prep. Just blood. He cried out and begged him to stop.

His pleading fell on deaf ears.

Lotor came in him and pulled out throwing Lance to the side in anger. The human not knowing what he did wrong. He did nothing wrong who pissed off the prince into taking his anger out on Lance? He grabbed Lance by the hair and chained him up leaving him alone in the dark room. Without a bath or a meal that night. He couldn't help but cry himself to sleep. Everything inside hurt.

When Lance woke up he was on his side. He tried to sit up but a pain ran up his spine and he cried out. He looked around and spotted Lotor walking into the room. He curled up in a ball. Scared the second he woke. Lotor grabbed him by the hair and tugged him up. He let out a cry and whimpered looking up at his prince. "Have you learned your lesson or did me fucking you all the time turn you into such a slut you needed to flirt with the guards?" Lance frowned and shook his head. He wiped his tears and gasped as he was dropped onto the cold floor. He blinks and looks up. Lotor...Lotor thought he was flirting with the guard? He sighed and sat up pressing their lips together.

"You...You did all that because you were jealous? I wasn't flirting with him. Even ask him yourself…" Lotor looks down at him. Nodding. He believes him. Thank goodness. He did not want to get hurt again. It was going to take a long enough time for his body to heal. He didn't want it to get worse. Lotor unchained him and carried him up. To bathe him. To eat. Lotor keeps Lance at his side every minute of the day from then on out. Lance forgave him, understanding. Besides if he is at his side Lotor will know everything he is doing. They spent a bit more time together before Lotor had to leave. To attack. The war is still going on. Lotor assigned him his maid. Not wanting to be alone. They sat in the bedroom. "Can...Can you cut my hair? I'll do your hair again..." So she did. His hair was so long. He had a full pony tail. But she brought it back to his short choppy self. Looking like how he used to before he was brought here. Feeling happier again.

Things between the two had begun to relax after weeks of time passing. But what hadn't relaxed was the war. Lance was woken up by Lotor who grabbed him into his arms. Taking him somewhere safe. The castle was under attack. Everyone was running around. Getting ready to fight. Lotor ran with him placing him to a pod. "Wait-" Lance sat up and pressed their lips together before falling back into the pod. It went dark as the prince ran off. All Lance could do was curl up and wait. And wait. Hours upon hours. He wouldn't have been surprised if he would have been there all day. But the castle grew silent. The fighting had gone off the planet. He later could hear footsteps approaching and hoped that everything was okay. That he was going to be safe. When Lance looked up he saw Lotor standing there smiling at him. Lotor picked him up and sat down on the floor. Lying down. Visibly exhausted. He rubbed at his back, as if Lance was the one that needed to be comforted.

Lotor rolled onto his side and Lance began to kiss at the prince's neck. He grabbed at his body and rubbed down. Gentle and slow. This is the first time Lance was the one to start it. To initiate sex between the two. He thought it would help him relax. Lance pulled his shorts down to his ankles and spread his legs. Letting Lotor take him right there on the floor. Lance smiles and rolls over. Sitting on him. Riding him. Letting the prince lay back so Lance could make him feel good. "I'm so happy you are here, I've wanted you since the first day I laid eyes on you." Back when he signed the peace treaty he later broke. Lance kept his eyes on him as he rocked his hips. "My pretty blue boy, do you love me?" Lance blinked and pressed their lips together. Nodding. Why the hell did he nod? "Good, be my partner, rule with me." Lance sat up a bit.

"What do you mean?" He whimpered out. Lotor kept on rocking into him. Rolling them back onto Lance's back.

"I can't rule the cosmos all alone, every king needs his queen. This king wants another king beside him." They pressed their forehead together. He would be a king. He would be appreciated by others. He could control other planets. He could watch over earth…

"I'll be your partner...Can I make my one request now?" Of course he hadn't forgotten the rules. He had yet to use his one request. "Let me have my home planet." Lotor nods and presses their lips together

"Once the war is over you shall have your home planet..." Lotor grabbed at Lance's hips and rolled into them slowly. He ducked his head down and bit down on his chest. Doing little things just to hear Lance whimper. Teasing him until Lance begged him for more. Lotor smirked. He won.

The fights had gotten closer and closer in time. They were getting more intense making Lotor more frustrated than usual. How were they managing to get so close? They had to move Lance to a new castle. They had to move the army over and over again. All while trying to still take over other planets. It was a hard job. Suspicions were starting to form. Someone was giving their position away every time. Who was the closest one to Voltron? All eyes went to Lance. Anger had taken over Lotor. He was losing it.

Lance was thrown against the wall. His head snapping back and he knew it had busted open as he slid down. His hands fell forward trying to bring himself to stand but Lotor had stepped on his fingers. He screamed out. There was no way they weren't broken. Lotor lifted him up by the front of his shirt and slammed him into the wall growling at him. Lance's eyes went wide and he looked away. Too scared to look him in the eyes. "How come they keep coming back? Why haven't they given up? I knew you were a slut I bet all of them have fucked you before and they want their little toy back." He threw him to the side only to grab him by the hair again. Dragging him out of the room. "I'm tired of taking care of you, you are useless to me. I'll find another toy. Someone who is worthy of being at my side." Lance clawed at his hairs. It hurt. He could feel his hair being pulled out. Lotor threw in him a room. "Have your way with it, kill it if that what you are into." Lance looked up and there were three guards around him. He immediately rushed for the door.

"P-Please don't do this! I didn't do anything wrong!" Lotor kicked him in the gut and he was dragged away by the guards. They were so much more built than Lotor. Lance didn't want to find out what was going to happen to him but he did. A guard pulled his arm behind his back. So tight. Lance could have sworn it was on the verge of snapping. The other ripped his shorts off and without hesitation stuck three thick fingers in him. Lance screamed out for the prince who was standing there in the doorway. Watching. A huge grin plastered on his face. He wasn't wet. But a fluid was forming on his thighs. He could only assume it was blood.

There was no way it wasn't blood when the guard threw him into the ground and thrusted into him.

Tears welled up in Lance's eyes and he didn't look away from Lotor as he thrashed around. He could have sworn if it wasn't for the fact that the other two guards were standing in front of him that there were two cocks inside of him. Tearing at his insides. He could feel his insides giving out. He could feel everything. The bile that wanted to come up from all the pain. The trauma his body was enduring. "Lotor p-please I'll do any-" The other guards covered his mouth trying to shut him up but Lance bit down on his large hand. "We were going to be partners! You said you _love_ me dammit!" All Lotor did was walk out the door. As the door shut all Lance saw was Xiotra covering her mouth? Tears welling up in her eyes as she ran away. At least someone in this castle cared about him.

The guards who were pinning him down lifted his body and Lance thrashed around. Fighting for his life. Was everything a lie? The other thrusted into his other hole. He cried out and bit down on his lip. He could feel his body giving out. He was going to die here. His body was already giving up. All he felt were the guards filling him up. Taking turns switching holes. Dirtying him up like some doll. He laid there hoping death would come faster. Lying in a puddle of his own blood and the guards come. All of his begging had turned into inaudible mumbling. His world had fallen silent. The only noises to be heard were the panting, the moaning, and the swearing of the guards. He was dead inside. Nothing mattered anymore. If the guards didn't kill him after this he surely would find a way to kill himself the second he had the chance.

Until everyone's heads snapped away. There were gunshots from outside the door. Suddenly the door busted open and the guards were shot. Great now there was more blood on him. The guards fell dead on him. Dead _in_ him. He couldn't help but let out a scream as he pushed the guards off of him. Moving back reaching for his clothes to cover up. The tears welling up as a familiar face walked into the face.

"Lance we have to go... Everyone is waiting for us." Lance sobbed instantly as _Keith_ covered him up. Carrying him out of the room. Xiotra waving with a sad smile as Lance felt his eyes grow heavy.


	5. Chapter 5

Lance didn't remember blacking out. He wasn't awake when they brought him to the castle and put him in a healing pod. He woke up and fell forward out of the pod. Arms wrapped around him keeping him from falling onto the floor. Lance looked up and stared for a moment at the person who caught him. Staring at the familiar ginger moustache. "Coran…?" Was he in the castle? This had to be a dream. Everything seemed so real he could have sworn he was just lucid dreaming. He had that nightmare of the guards and he must have woken up and gone back to bed. It had been so long. The team had forgotten about him. Slowly he was surrounded by the team. He hugged the man tightly and looked up. He spotted Allura walking into the room. _His_ blue Bayard attached to her belt. His eyes widened and he stepped back, "I have to see Blue..." Pushing past everyone he hobbled his way over to the Lion's den. There stood his lion. She has her shield up. Lance frowned and fell to the floor. She wasn't letting him in. It all makes sense. He disappeared and Blue gave up on him too… He was replaced by Allura. That's how they saved him. That's how they formed Voltron without him. Shakily he stood up shuffling to his room.

Sleeping in a bed he hasn't seen in months with tears streaming down his cheeks.

When Lance opened his eyes he was back in his old bed. His arms wrapped around Lotor's waist. He knew it. It was all a long dream. He was okay nothing had happened to him. He sat up and pressed a kiss to Lotor's lips as the prince slept. The prince chuckled and reaches up gently cupping Lance's cheek He was faking sleep. They kissed each other and Lance moved to sit on his chest peeling his own shirt off. Lotor keeps rubbing his cheek smiling. That smile broke and he wrapped his hands around Lance's throat and pushed him down choking him roughly. Lance thrashed around and looked around the room hoping that someone would save him. But all he saw were the guards. Lotor was gone and they were starting to peel his clothes off. Having their way with Lan-

Lance shot up screaming, tears streaming down his face. He had to be held down by Shiro who was sitting in a chair beside his bed. He thrashed around. Scared. He didn't feel safe his heart felt like it was going to jump out of his chest. As he is being held down he sees Keith running into the room. Lance curled up in a ball in Shiro's arms. Shaking violently. He couldn't tell what was real anymore. How was he supposed to tell if this was also a dream? Shiro wiped his cheeks dry and rubbed his back. "I think...I think we should wake up the others. Lance needs to tell us what happened this past year." Lance looked up and stared at Keith. Had he really been gone for a whole year? He couldn't believe it had been that long. He really had lost track of time.

It took some time for Lance to finally calm down. He felt exhausted. Shiro carried him into the training room so the others could sit around him and Lance could tell them what happened back when he lived in the castle with Lotor. He moved into Hunk's arms and curled up. Feeling comfortable here. Safe. He didn't want to talk. He just wanted to sleep. Keith was getting frustrated with it. He walked in on it. But that was only one time. He wanted to know the whole story. "Lance you need to tell them before I tell them what I walked in on." Lance shook his head and curled up. Clinging to Hunk as if his life depended on it. He didn't want to talk about it. He didn't want the others to know what happened to him. The torture. The hell he went through. He looks up and sees Pidge walking into the room. She looks like she has been crying.

"Keith I don't think that's best...Maybe we should use the headsets. So it'll be easier for Lance." So they did. Shiro left the room with Pidge, a hand rubbing her back. They come back with the headset and place it on Lance's head.

He curled up and just. Thought. Of how sweet Lotor was. How kind he treated him. How at that dinner he bragged to the others about how amazing Lance was. How he told Lotor, Lotor cared about him more than his team did. His eyes widened and he tried to stop thinking about it which made it worse. He stood up fast and threw the headset to the ground his shoulders shaking. He felt that his face was wet. He was crying again. He looked away and ended up making eye contact with Pidge. Oh fuck she's crying. "I-I'm sorry Pidge." He bolted out of the room and to his own. He went to lock to the door. But it wouldn't even shut. He grumbled and moved lying down on the bed curling up under the blankets. He heard footsteps and the chair move. Someone sat beside him.

"How are you feeling, my boy?" It was Coran. He knew Coran was listening. He knew Coran knew how he thought of them. How he believed they didn't really care for him. Lance stayed silent as Coran began talking. Telling him little stories Lance has already heard about from him about Altea. Its Coran's way of comforting him like he used to before he was kidnapped. Lance rolled over to face him. Watching Coran as he spoke. Listening. Calming down as his eyes fell heavy. Taking a nap before Coran woke him up, "Lance...It's time to eat. Sighing Lance stood up and followed him to the dining area. He didn't want to be around the team, he couldn't look at Pidge. She looked so...Heartbroken. He couldn't face any of them anymore.

Even though Lance had come to the realization that he was in the castle of Lions. That he was safe he still felt scared. Every motion caused him to flinch. He felt so pathetic around the others. Every night he would wake up screaming. Nightmares that were so lucid it hurt. He could never break out of them and that's what made him more scared. Shiro would have to hold him down. Using the pressure of a tight hug to try and calm him down. They would lay on his bed. Every day it would get worse. The others didn't know what to do. They never had to handle something like this. They all looked to Shiro more than they normally would. "It's PTSD, something happened back there that he doesn't want to talk about." Shiro was the only one who went through something so traumatic like this. Being a runaway prisoner himself. As helpful as Shiro was being he really couldn't help until he knew what really happened back there. He knew that Keith knew but the look on Lance's face when he begged Keith not to say anything kept him from asking. He only wants to hear what happened to Lance from Lance. When he is ready to talk about it.

Some people couldn't be as patient as Shiro. That person being Keith. Lance kept waking up for weeks, screaming and crying. Keith snapped and forced the headset onto Lance while the others were around. Every time when he woke up so the memories were fresh in his mind. So they could see what really happened during that year of Lance being gone. Pidge had to hide her face in Hunk's chest when they saw what happened. When Lance cried and the images kept popping up on the screen. He had to cover his ears so he wouldn't hear it. The paladins all went silent. The only noise coming from his memories on the screen. How Lance was abused. How he was tortured. How Lotor raped him. And raped him. And raped him. Lance felt like vomiting. He threw the headset off and stood up. "You shouldn't have saved me...I was fine there."

Keith shakes his head and grabs the headset moving closer to Lance. He knew there was more to what happened and the team needed to see it. They needed to know the full extent of what happened in the Galra castle. They need to know what Keith ended up walking in on when they saved Lance. "I shouldn't have saved you…? You could have died!" Lance glared at him pushing him away. He didn't want to think of what he went through any longer. He wanted to push the memories aside and forget about them forever.

"Then let me die Keith! It's not like you care! None of you do." He shouted and stormed out of the room. Tears streamed down his face as he ran through the castle. He needed to get out of there. He needed to go back. Back to the people who cared for him. He ran to the Lion den and banged on Blue's protective shield. "Blue open up! Please...I want to go. Let me go back. Take me back…" He fell to his knees and sobbed into his palms wiping them away as they kept on falling.

"Lotor is dead Lance. We killed him. Their army was wiped." Lance tensed up and looked over his shoulder. The tears wouldn't stop. It was Shiro. Did they really kill him? What about the others the ones that were good. The maids that were prisoners themselves despite also being Galra. He shook his head and curled up against the shield. That couldn't be true. They got lucky defeating Zarkon but Lotor was stronger. His methods were different. There was no way he could be dead. They must have gotten lucky. He looked up at Shiro who was sitting at his side. His chest doesn't hurt as much. But it's confusing him. Why is he calming down now that he knows Lotor is dead?

"He… He loved me...I loved him...Why do I feel relieved he is gone Shiro?" He leaned into his arms and bit on his lip. Running out of tears to cry. Shiro sighed and picked him up. Holding him close as he carried him to the lounging area. Hoping he could get Lance to calm down as he came up with a plan to help Lance heal. Even if it was just by one percent. He wanted the old Lance back. Or what he knew Lance to be. He shook his head as they sat down, Lance shaking in his hold, Shiro wants to know the real Lance. Lance tried to fall asleep in Shiro's arms as Shiro came up with a plan. A way to get Lance to open up. A way to help Lance cope with what happened when he was kidnapped.

For the moment being he assigned the paladins to what Keith referred to as 'Lance-duty' where every day while the others cleaned up the space pollution one person would spend the day with Lance. Keeping an eye on him. Making sure he is safe that someone will be there if Lance needs anything.

Hunk was the first one. He felt as Lance's best friend he should be with him first. They spent the day cleaning the castle. It was really just Lance sitting down while Hunk cleaned and talked to him. Lance didn't get why Hunk continued to call himself Lance's best friend especially after they found out how Lance felt about them. How Lance believed they didn't care about him. He no longer knew how to act. Because everyone was back on high alert when it came to his emotions. He couldn't lie about his feelings or hide in his room like he always did. He would get dragged around so they could keep an eye on him. Hunk made him help in feeding the mice and making sure the castle was okay.

Lance felt better when it was Shiro watching him. Shiro would let him stay in bed and sleep the day away. Shiro would help him calm down when he woke up screaming. He felt a bit safer knowing Shiro was with him.

As much as he tried to avoid him. It was easier with Keith. Keith let him sit in the control room old the training area. Letting him do something easy without talking.

Every time Pidge kept him company was rough. She couldn't look him in the eyes without crying. They would lay in Lance's bed as she cried into his chest. Saying in a whisper how scared she was. How she was tired of losing the people she cared about. Days with Pidge were more of Lance comforting her and reminding her that he was back. He was safe there in the castle of Lions.

On days when Coran watched Lance they would walk around the castle. Just keeping Lance active. Keeping him from moping around in bed. Coran would talk for hours without pressuring Lance to talk back. Wanting the boy to be comfortable to be okay. Allura he had the hardest time with. He was still angry with her. For taking Blue and replacing him. He would lay in bed and hide under his blankets. His nails dug into his forearms. No one left him alone. Not until they began to trust Lance. Until Lance went back to his old self. Good at hiding his emotions and faking a smile. They finally began to leave him alone for hours at a time. Only getting together once last time. For a meeting when Allura told them they could go to Earth. Lance ran to Blue.

He was going home


	6. Chapter 6

This isn't something anyone should have to explain to their mother. It is now the hardest thing Lance has ever had to do. And to think he believed telling his mother he broke the fancy china from Cuba was the hardest thing. He was grounded for a month after that. But this topped it. Explaining to his mother that he was raped up there. For a year Lance was tortured and he had to admit that all to his mother. Explaining took hours. It would have taken less but Lance had to stop and just. Cry. Keith would butt in explain for Lance when Lance couldn't do it himself. All his mother could do was sit there and wipe her son's tears away while listening. It was painful to watch. Painful for her to hear. Painful for Lance to explain. After telling her of the truth. The whole story. The things not even the Paladins knew. Lance stands up and goes to the back door leaving Keith alone in the room with his mother to talk. He can't be in there anymore. He had to see Blue.

Slipping outside Lance moved to sit in Blue turning on her protection setting the second he gets comfortable so no one can spot him. So he can be alone for real. To sit in his chair and think for a bit. Just the other day Blue didn't let him in. What was different? Was it because he actually wanted to go home. His mind was set on something that wasn't Lotor? That must have been it. Lance continues to think. Now everything that happened is on his mind. Everything he said to his mother. The things he said in front of _Keith._ Keith knows more than anyone else now. He didn't want the Paladins to know anything at first but now Keith knows. He couldn't help it. Lance would never lie to his mother. Because he knows that despite what happened to him his mother would never look at him differently. She loved her son no matter what.

The original plan was to sleep out here in Blue but his mind is all over the place with his thoughts. Trying to come up with some sort of plan. Keith found Lance here thanks to Red. Maybe he could use his lion to find the others. They have a bond. It shouldn't be too hard to find the other Paladins. Lance sits up in the chair and wipes his tears one more time as he sees Leo walk in through the back gate. School is over already? It really did take long to tell his mother what happened. Lance takes a deep breath and moves out. Trailing behind his younger brother so he can go inside. Lance moves to sit in the living room and walks in on Anna sitting on Keith's lap. He forgot she was home. "So are you going to stay or not?" Lance blinks as he makes eye contact with the little girl. "Lance, tell him he should stay here with us. It's either us or his own family." Moving forward Lance picks the little girl up and sits her on the couch.

"You'll stay with us. I'll make a bed in my room for you." Lance almost forgot Keith has no family… The last member of his family just died to save him while they were in space. His mother. Before that his father abandoned him in a shack when he was twelve. He was on his own for a year until he joined the Garrison which is where Shiro learned of his situation and took care of Keith. But then Shiro disappeared. He got kicked out of school and then found the team. But Shiro disappeared then came back then Lance was kidnapped. Keith kept on losing people. He was never able to get used to being surrounded by so many people that would _never_ leave him. Now is his chance. Keith stands and nods moving over to help Lance's mother start dinner. Lance can't help but smile.

Keith continued to help around the house until it was time to eat dinner. It's nice and it makes Lance feel safe. When the kids come up to him after dinner to hug him and kiss him goodnight it makes him happy. It all used to be normal. Lance did a lot of work around the house before he left. Even his older sibling respected him. Everyone would hug him or kiss his head before going to bed. This time it felt different and Lance knows it's different. The love they give him. It's because they don't know if he will disappear again. What if they wake up and Lance is gone? He won't let that happen again. Lance helps his mother clear off the table as everyone leaves to shower or go to sleep. "Lance, Keith and I can handle this. Go make your bed." Lance nods and presses a quick kiss to his mother's cheek.

He heads to the attic first. He has to grab another mattress for Keith. At least...He hopes it's still up here. The house hasn't changed much. Everyone is still in the rooms they were in before Lance left. The only difference is that Leo and Anna are sharing a room now. Luckily for Lance the mattress is still there. He drags it down and into his room where he places it next to his own. Lance pulls clean sheets onto them and presses the two mattresses together. One big bed. It reminds him of Lotor's bed. Damn that bed was so soft and comfortable. It made everything almost bearable. Wait. Why? Why is he thinking of that monster. Lance quickly wipes the tears he didn't even realize were starting to form. He looks up and Keith is there in the doorway. He looks back at the mattresses and stands. He can't do this. "Can…Can we sleep in Blue tonight?" Keith takes a deep breath and picks the blankets up for him.

"Of course. Let's go." Lance shuffles up behind him and keeps wiping his cheeks. They walk past Mrs. McClain on their way down the stairs. The two say their goodnights and walk out the door. They move inside of the Lion spreading the blankets on the floor where they lay down. Keith being the first to fall asleep. Lance can't. Last night he only fell asleep due to exhaustion He slips out of Blue and stands in front of her.

"Why...Why did you do it? Did you really give up on me that fast?" He is trying to come to terms with it. To move on. He wants answers. But he will learn to forgive. He understands. They needed Voltron to save Lance. To save the universe. Allura happened to be there to help them along again. Like when they all lost Shiro. She has already piloted the blue lion. Blue trusted her. Lance will get over it eventually.


	7. Chapter 7

When Lance woke up he felt warm. Comfortable. Relaxed. He sits up and looks around. He doesn't remember moving back into Blue. He doesn't remember falling asleep in general. He must have passed out while talking to Blue. Someone must have brought him back in. Keith. Lance clings to the blankets he was wrapped in and lays back down. His suspicions confirmed when his head hits something soft. He was using Keith's jacket as a pillow. Taking a deep breath he stretches on the floor and moves to get out. Shuffling through the back yard then through the door. It smells so good. They must be starting breakfast. Lance moves over to the kitchen and sits at the table quietly. Watching Keith help his mother with the cooking. He lays his head on the table and smiles listening to the two talk.

"Do you know how to say dog, Keith?" The look of confidence on Keith's face makes Lance snort into his hand especially after he struggles to roll the R when he says.

" _Perro!_ For us it's _Inu._ " Oh so that's what they are doing. Teaching each other their maiden tongue. Lance stands up and wraps his arms around his mother from behind. Keith shoots him a look. Practically asking if he was okay. Lance nods and Keith relaxes once more. "Morning, Lance..." The three stay in the kitchen setting up breakfast as they hear footsteps trickle down the stairs. Lance finds himself looking over at the clock on the stove and then the calendar. It's Friday. It's going to take some time to get used to life on earth. To get himself back on schedule. Together they sit at the table and eat breakfast. One by one they give Lance hugs and leave. For school. For work. For wherever they have to go that isn't home. Keith is the first to stand; he takes Lance's plate to the sink alongside his own.

Lance sighs and stands up moving to lean against his mother. She pats his head and runs her fingers through his hair. "Lance, go take a shower we are going to buy you some new clothes." He looks up at her and stares. Lance? _New_ clothes? Lance has always worn hand me down clothes. His favorite jacket belonged to his great grandfather. "Both of you need new clothes." Okay what the hell? Even Keith? Where did they magically get all this money?

"Mama, we don't need any-"

"Lance we haven't touched any of the money. We were going to wait for you to spend it all." Oh yeah. The damn Garrison paid his family to keep silent. To pretend he never existed. "It's yours to spend baby." Lance looks over at Keith as if he was asking for approval. Keith nods. Taking a deep breath Lance nods back and stands moving over to the bathroom. He grabs a towel from under the sink and run the water. Taking the time to peel his clothes off. New clothes. He never really thought of getting new clothes. The only new clothes he got were the Garrison uniform. His clothes are all from before the fourth industrial revolution. Dropping the clothes to the floor he stares at himself in the mirror. Running his fingers along the scars on his chest. The scars on his arms and neck. He shakes his head and slips into the shower scrubbing his body down. In the first years of Lance being in space he kept his self-care routine and tried his best to do it every day. But…

Shit went down and he couldn't anymore.

Today was the day he was going to go back to it. He grabbed a razor from the cabinet and started at his legs. His arms. Everywhere until he was smooth. Killing three razors in the process. He washes his hair and scrubs down once more. Nice and clean. Turning off the water he slips out and wraps the towel around him. Looking around the bathroom for acne medicine. The stuffs old. He still puts it on, dripping water onto the floor as he moves to his room to get dressed. He can feel the cream hardening. It makes him smile. Trying to live his old life again. To be a normal human being again. Lance moves out of his room and spots Keith standing outside his door. "I almost forgot how long you take when you shower; I bet you used all the hot water didn't you?" Lance scoffs and shoves him playfully.

"Go shove it Mullet." Keith huffs and shoves him back his fingers going to run through his own hair as he looks down. The two walk down the stairs together.

"It's been years since my hair has looked like that and you still won't let it go…" Lance moves to the bathroom to wipe his face clean really fast. He'll do a face mask later. Lance hears the car keys jingle and he knows it's time to go. He jogs up to stand by his mother. Holding her hand. A habit he will never grow out of. They move to the car and drive off. The windows down. Wind hitting them in the face. Making his hard to keep their eyes open but it's still nice. He lays his head against the door and smiles at his mother when he feels her hand on his knee. Lance waits until the car is parked and his mother steps out first to get out of the car. Walking up to her side. Always a Mama's boy no matter how long they have been separated. Lance looks back at Keith and motion for him to get close. They are shopping for him too, no? It's only when they walk up the automatic door does Lance realize where they are.

"Mama! We cannot shop here it's so-"

"Lance we have money now. Buy yourself some nice clothes and if you really feel bad we can take everyone else with us next time and you can buy them nice clothes too." Lance squeezes her hand and nods.

"I uh...I don't get it. It's a mall right? What's so wrong with it?" Lance looks at Keith and shakes his head.

"It's where all the rich white people in town shop. I used to get bullied big time because I had never even walked in here." Mrs. McClain shakes her head and drags the two men into a store. Grabbing anything she thinks her son will look good in. Grabbing everything in multiple sizes. It's all so fast and speedy. It's a reminder to Lance and Keith never to mess with her. She is a woman on a mission. She is so scary when she is serious she could have probably defeated the Galra alone. While Lance is getting dressed trying on each outfit and stepping out to get his mother's approval or disapproval he spots his mother eyeing Keith up and down. Lance chuckles as he watches his mother drag Keith around. Figuring out what he should wear. He likes this. How fast his family accepted Keith as one of their own.

From one store to another Mrs. McClain gets the men plenty of clothes to start off with. Lance agrees to bring the rest of the family to get stuff once he found out how much money the Garrison gave them. But that'll be for another time. For now they go home to relax. Mrs. McClain sits on the couch with Lance in her arms. Keith lying comfortably against Lance's legs. They sit there. Watching television together. His mother rambling about random things that happened while Lance was away. How Leo broke his arm jumping onto the trampoline into the pool at his friend's house. How Marquis and Maria are looking into adopting children. How Anna won silver in her figure skating competition. Little things that she knows will make Lance happy. His mother cups his cheeks and kisses his forehead. "Lance, I haven't told anyone... It's up to you who in the family we tell... But I feel like you should tell Rebecca when you are ready."

Oh. Lance frowns and nods. She has a point. Rebecca is his oldest sibling. Lance's favorite family member not counting his mother of course. He is her favorite too. She spoiled him rotten once she became successful. She has been on his side since the very beginning. When he came out she paid for his surgeries his medication his everything. She was the one who convinced their parents to let Lance go to the Garrison. She paid for his tuition. Anything Lance needed to be happy she gave him. Ever since he was little Rebecca had always been there for him. He wonders how she reacted to him disappearing. Did she blame herself because she was the reason he was able to go?

"I'll tell her...but not now." She nods and squeezes her son close. It's so nice to be home.

"She's coming home next week?!" Lance shouts as he peeks his head out from behind the shower curtain to stare at his mother. In shock. Why didn't she tell him Rebecca would be home earlier when they were already talking about her?

"I called her the first night you were back. She had to wait to take off work so could fly over here. She is still working in Korea you know." Lance sighs and turns the water off. His mother hands him a towel and he steps out once the towel is wrapped around him. He reaches into the cabinet to put on a face mask and brush his teeth. "Do you want to come with me to pick her up from the airport? " Slipping out of the bathroom he kisses her cheek.

"I'll think about it la-" He bumps into Keith and grips his towel tightly to keep it from falling. "Oh...Hey it's your turn to shower. Quick before Leo beats you and takes up all the hot water. He is worse than I am." Keith nods and follows Lance to his room to grab a towel and the pajamas Mrs. McClain bought him. Lance looks at him and laughs. "Ninja turtles? Really? You know that show is hella old right?"

"Yeah before everything happened I went to see the anniversary movie showing with Shiro. It's still going on." Lance snorts and pushes him out of the room so he can get dressed. Drying his hair off with his towel he sits down and looks at the bags of clothes. He shakes his head and starts to hang up the shirts in the closet putting the old clothes on the mattresses for now. He looks down and spots something that makes his face light up. Old ice skates. Covered in dust. They haven't been touched since the last time Lance wore them. Rebecca taught him how to state.

He's scared for her to come home. It was hard enough telling his mother what happened. He doesn't know if he could do it again with Rebecca. Gripping the ice skates close he sighs and tries to think happier thoughts. He taught Anna to skate once she could run on her own. They went to the ice rink every summer and during the winter breaks. He loves skating. He even taught Hunk how to skate. Grabbing the pillows off the floor Lance moves to go sleep in Blue because everyone has gone to bed except Keith and himself. He walks outside and smiles at Keith who is reading a book. Lance's eyes focus on the book and he realizes what book it is. He isn't reading he is just looking. Lance shrieks and grabs the book dropping all the pillows in his arms.

 _The Baby Book._

He bolts across the yard looking at the page Keith was on. Goddammit. "I'll forgive you if you go to the store with me." Keith shrugs and stands up moving over to Lance's side. Huffing Lance walks back inside to grab the debit card and puts the book on top of the fridge. "Let's go." He sighs and walks out the front door making sure to close the door quietly so they don't wake up. Lance keeps his head up watching the stars as they walk past the sand onto the paved sidewalks. Making their way to the store. It's a long walk but it's nice. It's not like Lance was going to fall asleep anytime soon. Lance stops in front of the bright lights of the sports store. He runs up to the doors and makes a sharp left. He knows exactly where to go. He looks through boxes and finds a nice pair of silver skates. He tries them on and kicks his legs in the air looking over at Keith. "What do you think?" Keith shrugs. "You're the worst. I'm going to get them."

So he does. He practically runs back home. Showing his skates off to Blue. Something clicks in his head. A full lightbulb. He presses his head to blue and smiles. "Can you do me a favor Girl? I want to skate...Can you freeze a patch for me..?" He steps back and stares at her. A smile forming as she lays her head on the grass. The ground freezing over more than half the yard. He kisses her muzzle and runs over to the back porch to put on the skates. Keith watches him glide on the ice with a gentle smile. Lance continues to skate around aimlessly. He knows his feet are going to hurt in the morning from breaking in these skates. Keith fell asleep on the porch swing watching Lance. Lance skates until he is tired. Proud of himself.

Today was the first day he hadn't thought of Lotor

Lance's eyes open fast when he feels himself being shaken. Already on alert. He looks up and it's Leo waking him up. "It's time to eat breakfast...Both of you wake up." Lance sits up and spots a sleeping Keith at his side. Oh yeah. They fell asleep on the porch swing .He blinks and stands up watching Keith sleep. Taking a deep breath he shoos Leo away and gently shakes Keith awake not wanting him to wake up ready to fight like Lance was. Lance can't help but chuckle when Keith whines and pushes his hand away. Lance smiles and goes inside looking around at the floor. Ignoring the weird looks his family is giving him. He finds the largest shoe in the house. There it is. Marquis' shoe. He grins and walks back over to where Keith is asleep. He leaves the shoe right by his face letting him breathe in that horrible scent. It only takes moments before Lance notices Keith's nose scrunch up. The man sits up and glares.

"Ugh that was fucking disgusting what the hell Lance?" Lance laughs and helps Keith stand leading him inside. Breakfast is already set up. Lance takes a seat at the table and starts serving himself only to drop his fork as Anna sits down on his lap looking up at him. Smiling. Lance presses a kiss to her forehead and continues to serve himself. Feeding Anna as he feeds himself. They all stay seated at the table even after those who have finished eating have put their plates in the sink. Lance stares at them for a moment. Oh. It's Saturday. They don't have school. Anna lays her head on his shoulder and hums.

"Lance can you braid my hair for me?"

"Of course sweetheart." Smiling he pushes his chair back from the table with his feet, running his fingers through her hair slowly. He parts her hair until three sections and hums. Crossing the sections over each other into a nice and tight French braid. It makes him feel warm. He remembers how happy it made him when he would braid the maids' hair. Especially Xiotra's they were all so kind to him. No one says anything when they notice there are tears down Lance's cheeks. Not wanting to make him uncomfortable. Not wanting a repeat of the other day where saying _those_ words triggered Lance into vomiting. Lance's head shoots up when he is knocked out of his thoughts when there is knocking on the door. He carries Anna and puts her down in his seat wiping his cheeks, he isn't dumb he knows he was crying, and walks to the door. He opens it and sees there is no body standing there. All there is a basket of cookies on the floor. Lance sighs and picks it up shutting the door behind him with his foot. "Mama…Hunk was here."

Keith looks over as Lance puts the basket on the table. Leo is the first to try and grab one but Lance slaps his hand away. Lance picks Anna back up and takes a seat back at the table. Looking over at everyone he smiles. It's going to be their first full day as a family together since Lance got back. No one is moving. As if they are waiting for Lance to tell them to do something. Usually they would be playing outside and being annoying but Lance is back and no one knows what to do now. Looking around he looks outside the back window. Staring at Blue. He has the perfect idea. Standing up he walks outside and presses a hand to Blue's paw. "Hey girl…Do you think you can do it again. I know it's not to save the universe and all bu-" He doesn't even finish his sentence before Blue puts her head down and Lance slips on the ice forming beneath his feet. He laughs and lays there for a moment. "You're the best." He feels her rumble and he can't help but smile. "I'm not the best, you are. Thank you." He stands up carefully and goes inside ushering everyone outside.

He sits on the back stairs and starts putting the skates on. He winces as he can feel the inside rubbing against the blisters on his feet. He moves onto the ice and laughs as he watches Anna shriek and run back inside. She returns with her own pair and a pair for Leo. He glides around. Holding onto his sister's hands as they skate together. They laugh together as Lance picks her up into the air. He jokes with her about being her pair skate partner. Lance looks over at the back porch and catches Keith smiling at him. They make eye contact and Lance snorts as Keith looks away in embarrassment. Lance caught him. He watches Keith for a bit and thinks for a moment. It clicks. _Keith has never ice skated before._ Lance gasps and skates to the edge of the ice.

"Keith Kogane. Get my dad's skates. You are learning to skate!" Anna looks up at Lance and squeezes his hand. She leaves the ice and sits on the stairs putting her blade covers on so she can walk inside. She grabs Keith's hand and leads him inside leaving her brothers on the ice to mess around. It takes a while for Keith to come out; Anna practically had to drag him outside to get him on the ice. "Leo get off, we are gonna need all the space possible for this mess." Leo chuckles and sits down taking his old skates off as their sister pushes Keith onto the ice once she made him put on the skates. Keith wobbles and Lance takes his hands glaring at Lance. "Oh come on it'll be fun..." He looks over Keith's shoulder and sees Leo walk inside then back out with a camera. He chuckles and slowly drags him around the ice.

Keith lasted barely a half hour before he hobbled off the ice. Tired of falling on his ass but mostly tired of Lance laughing at him. Lance teases him for it. But follows him anyway, his feet tired. Leo and Anna take this chance and rush onto the ice. Having the whole yard to themselves. It's nice. Lance and Keith sit on the porch swing and lay back. Taking their skates off to relax. Swaying side to side Lance shuts his eyes. Thinking for a moment. It's so nice a peaceful here on Earth. The two Paladins stay on the swing with Mrs. McClain watching Lance's siblings skate around waiting until it's time to eat again. The two kids skate while Lance lays his head against his mother's shoulder listening to the calm beach beside him. How could Earth go so long without knowing the danger it was in. Or is it still in danger?

"Keith…?" The dark haired man looks over at Lance. "Do you...Do you think we are done with Voltron? Will we have to l-leave?" His voice cracked as he squeezed his mother's hand. He just got back he doesn't want to leave his family.

Keith frowns at him and looks down. Lance can already tell what he is about to say. "There will always be another villain to fight. It may not be for another twenty years but Voltron will have to be formed again. If it's not in our lifetime the Lions will find new paladins like they did for us." He takes Lance's other hand and flashes a reassuring smile. Hoping to help him relax. "Let's just focus on where we are today okay? One day at a time."


	8. Chapter 8

Its Sunday already and Lance is woken up by his mother. He fell asleep on the couch after dinner when they put a movie on. Everyone was sprawled around on the floor. Keith was on the recliner with Anna Leo was on the floor with Marquis and Maria. Keith is the only one still asleep now. Lance looks up at his mother; she is dressed very nicely and is holding one of his father's suits. Oh. He almost forgot. It's been years since he's gone. Sitting up he takes the suit from her hands and kisses her head. He walks to his room and gets dressed. Standing in front of the mirror. Noticing how much he has changed since he left earth. With everything that happened he never had time to look at himself. He's grown so much. He is already twenty two. Taking a deep breath he moves to the bathroom to brush his teeth and fix his hair. Anna is sitting on the toilet playing on her DS.

Lance lets out a laugh and shakes his head taking it away from her. "Go get dressed before Mama kills you." Anna whines and scuttles out of the bathroom. He wipes his face and makes his way downstairs to put on shoes. Lance looks over and see's Keith is still asleep. Carefully he shakes his shoulders trying to wake him up. Keith looks up at him with tired eyes. "Hey...We are going to church. It's just down the street if you want to meet up with us there in a few hours." Keith nods and rolls over. Lance chuckles and moves over to the chicken where is mother is drinking a cup of coffee. He kisses her cheek and leans against her in silence. Just being around his mother is relaxing. Everyone shifts into the kitchen and that's when Lance knows it's time to go. He feels a hand take his so he looks down. It's Anna. He squeezes her hand and walks out the front door.

Together they walk down the street. The church is close by. All eyes are on Lance as they step into the building. Lance's mother stops him and smiles. Inside is the holy water. "Let me do it okay?" He nods and leans forward. Letting his mother bless him. His first time to church in six years. He spots many familiar faces and it brings tears to his eyes. Slowly but surely he is crowded by others especially when it is time to give grace. The elders surround him and even the priest comes up to him. They all say things like how their prayers were answered. How they all asked god to keep him safe. If only they knew what really went on while he was away. Lance breaks away to go sit in the fields only to be surrounded by children this time.

He can't say no to these cute faces. He chases them around and throws them over his shoulder. He looks up and spots Keith. He puts the child down and walks over. Then breaks into a jog when he notices Keith is talking to Hunk. He stands next to the two with a smile on his face. "What are we talking about now?" Hunk looks over at him and smiles. Wrapping an arm around Lance.

"I'm going to be staying in the castle with Shay and the others. My grandmother died and new people moved in. I've got nowhere to go. All my stuff must have been sold." Lance frowns and leans against the taller man.

"We have everything in the attic honey." They look back and there is Mrs. McClain standing there smiling. "Everyone is talking about throwing a party at our house to celebrate your return it'll be bigger than our normal post-church lunch, you are welcome to come dear." Hunk smiles and shakes his head. He steps back and looks around. Then up at the sky.

"No thank you… I have people waiting for me." Hunk walks the McClain's back to their house before leaving. Post-Church lunch has always been a big deal for them. The other members of the church would come over for the meal and they would play games. Today was bigger than ever. People brought over lots of dishes it was like a huge pot-luck. There are so many people in the house. So many people asking Lance questions. He had to break away from it all. He notices Keith is nowhere to be seen and that really sets him into a panic. He looks all around the house for him but he can't find the other paladin. He slips outside and finds Anna sitting on the back porch playing with Keith's hair.

"Keith did you dye your hair in space? You have purple highlights in the sun." Keith laughs and shakes his head.

"Can you keep a secret Anna?" She nods her head and leans in close. "It's natural. My mom was an alien." He smirks, making a face you could tell he was saying it to see if she would believe him or not.

"Like the ones that hurt Lance?" Keith goes silent and Lance covers his mouth staying behind the door where he can't be seen. Keith opens his mouth but Anna cuts him off. "I went to go to the bathroom and I heard you guys telling mama. Don't worry I won't tell anyone." Lance bites his lip and wipes the tears that begin to form. He turns on his heel moving inside. Avoiding eye contact with everyone as he bolts up the stairs. Hiding in his bedroom. He peels the suit off and gets into more comfortable clothes. He can feel the food coming up but is far too busy crying to go to the bathroom. Why did Anna have to hear that? She looked up to Lance why did she have to learn that he is weak. He was always so cool and strong in her eyes. All of that is ruined.

Lance does not remember crying himself to sleep in bed. He doesn't remember Keith slipping into bed with him either. All he knows is that he is currently being woken up by Marquis. "It's time to eat dinner; you've been out since noon. It's almost nine already." Slowly he sits up and rubs at his eyes. They feel hot and swollen. They're puffy too. He sighs and curls up into a ball. He slept for so long but dreamt of nothing. Nothing but the feeling of just. Existing. Taking a moment Lance turns around and gently wakes up Keith. He stands up and shakes his shoulders until his eyes open.

"It's...It's dinner time." Keith nods and stands up rubbing at his own eyes. Lance leaves the room to head down the stairs. He sits at the table and keeps his head down. Anna is sitting across from him at the table and he can't look at her. He never wanted anyone to know. But the longer he lives the more people find out. Everyone is talking but Keith and himself. Lance didn't even serve himself. There's this feeling. It's making him tense. He knows exactly what this feeling is. They did this when Lance came out for the first time. They tried to be relaxed and overly normal. To make him feel comfortable and happy. But it always does the opposite. Especially now because they don't know the full story. They are being nice because they know something is wrong. It's making his chest hurt. He takes a deep breath.

"I was raped." Everyone goes silent. Keith drops his fork and his mother looks at him.

"Lance, baby you don't ha-"

"Yes I do Mama they deserve to know, Anna already knows for fucks sake." He bites his lips. Ready to get scolded for swearing at his mother but she doesn't. She doesn't say anything. He takes another deep breath and keeps his head down. Going over _everything_ that happened. Holding onto Keith's arm the whole time. He starts crying again. This is all practice for when Rebecca gets home and he has to tell her. The more he talks about it the easier it should be right? Wrong. "Bella and Abuello died before I could say I-I'm home. They're probably up there going crazy because they can't find me..." He wipes his cheeks and stands up. "I-...I'm gonna go talk to Blue for a bit. Sorry." He pushes his chair in and slips into the back yard. Lying beneath his Lion. Curled up against her legs. He rolls over and see's Keith walking over. "Keith...I really just want to be alone."

"Alright...Don't be too long..." He nods and goes back inside leaving Lance with blue outside. Lance sighs heavily and curls back up. Venting to his Lion with his thoughts. Trusting in Blue. She is the only one who really understands him. It takes hours for Lance to come back inside its pitch black out and he knows everyone is probably in bed His eyes heavy and tired from all his tears. Stepping into the doorway he bumps right into Keith and looks away. He walks around him, avoiding him. Thinking too much. There is no way he is going to tell Rebecca about all of this. He won't tell her. He slips back outside and sits beside blue. He'll sleep in her tonight. He sits in the grass and looks over. Marquis is walking over. He hands Lance a plate of food.

"You didn't eat at dinner...Here I know how you get." Looking down Lance puts it down and lays back. Watching Keith walk up behind Marquis and sitting down beside Lance. Lance pushes the plate over to him. He can't eat. If he does he'll end up puking it up. He lays his head on Keith's arm and shuts his eyes. Feeling so tired.

They're doing it again. Lance is seated at the table with a plate of breakfast Keith served him. They're being overly nice and he hates it. They're doing it again but now it is worse because now they know. They know the hell he went through in the Galra Empire. He appreciates what they are trying to do but it isn't helping. It's making him upset. Lance stands up from the table pushes his chair in and leaves. Walking through the front door without a word. He jogs down the street but doesn't make it very far. He wanted to run away and hang out with Hunk like he always did.

But Hunk isn't here anymore. He's on Arus. Lance stands outside his house. His old house and sighs. Rubbing his face. He has nobody he can go to anymore. All he has is Keith. He isn't going to Keith with his problems. Keith pities him and he hates that. He feels a hand on his own and he turns around. Of fucking course it's Keith. "Come back, everyone is starting to worry about you." Lance glares at him and smacks his hand away. Stepping back. "Lance, don't act like this. Everyone is worrying abo-"

"Leave me alone! Go find Shiro or something." Lance swings and slaps him tired of it. Keith stops and glares at him. Grumbling under his breath he turns around and continues walking. Until he feels Keith's arms wrap around him and before he knows it he is launched over Keith shoulder. "You put me down right now Kogane before I kick your ass!" Keith ignores Lance. Ignores his kicking and thrashing around. Until they are back at the house. He drops him on the couch and crosses his arms. Obviously pissed off.

"I will find _Takashi_ and then you'll regret hitting me." With that he walks out of the front door. Lance sighs and curls up on the couch. He takes a moment before getting up and walking up the stairs. Going to hide off in his room. Something he has always done even when he was little when he was going through something he wanted to face on his own. Lance keeps himself locked up in his room for hours. He's nice and quiet until someone knocks on his door. He groans and rolls under his blanket.

"Leave me alone..."

"Now is that any way to talk to your favorite sister?" Lance's head shoots up. Is that really? He stands up and opens the door wrapping his arms around the woman without hesitation. He looks up and smiles. "It really is you Lance. Look how much you have grown..." She cups his cheeks and presses their foreheads together.

"Rebecca you're home early…" Lance steps back and takes a seat on his bed. Where he lays his head on her lap. Rebecca runs her fingers through his hair. Humming. Enjoying each other's company for the first time in what feels like centuries. Lance only tells his sister of Voltron. Not the bad. He knows she was worried. He doesn't want to make her more worried. Lance finds himself relaxing around his eldest sister. They slip out of his room and move back to where everyone is. If Rebecca is here her husband should be too. Things feel like they are starting to get back to normal. Everyone is home now. Even. Great.

Keith is back with Shiro standing behind him. Lance looks away and huffs. "Get in Blue we have to leave right now." Lance's head snaps back and he stands up. He nods and moves to the back yard. Getting right into his lion. Sitting down and following the two lions ahead of him. The ride is long and Lance expected to have to go to the castle. So when they landed at Keith's desert shack he became pissed off quite easily. He ran out of Blue and grabbed Keith by the collar of his shirt and began shaking him.

"We are finally on earth so can't you just leave me alone?!" He yells at him. "I thought we were going back to the castle. I thought we had work to do." He huffs and lets him go turning back to Blue. Both of his arms arm grabbed and he is dragged into the shack by even Shiro. "What the quiznak guys let me go home!" They put him on the Futon and cross their arms looking at him. Keith sits on the table in front of him. Sighing heavily.

"You wanted to be alone. So you'll stay here. Shiro knows what you said to your mother. We both know you are not okay. You're staying here until you can open up to us Lance. We might have defeated the Galra but we are still the paladins of Voltron. We are still a team. Act like it."

Shiro stays in the shack with the two. Keeping them from fighting all the time. The way they act makes something click in Lance. They've seen his memories. They know how he feels about the way they feel about him. That he feels that they don't care. Lance knows that they don't care. No one paid attention to him. They always pushed him away. Rolled their eyes at him when he tried to be funny. To make others feel better. They aren't doing this because they care. The help they are giving is because they feel bad. They feel guilty. It's more pity and it pisses Lance off even more than they already were. He ignores the two other paladins and sleeps the day away. He takes plenty of short naps but when it comes to night time and he is out like a light…The nightmares come back.

Lance shoots up from the futon with a loud shout and grips his chest. Looking around. The sun is up. He hears footsteps come close and curls up in a ball shaking. He feels arms wrap around him. The dream was so scary. In the dream he knew it wasn't real but he couldn't wake himself up. He looks up and shakes his head thrashing out of his hold. Pushing Keith away from him. "Let me go! Let me go home already!" He bites his lip and keeps pushing away. Not even in real life can he push others off of him. In the nightmare he couldn't push Lotor off. He couldn't get away from the guards. He couldn't get out of the cage the put him in and tossed him in the water to die. Why can't he do anything right? He looks up with tears streaming down his face.

"I want to go home Keith…I need to see my mom." Keith shakes his head and dries his tears lying down with an exhausted Lance in his arms. He rubs his back in slow circles. Helping him calm down.

"It's going to be okay Lance, Shiro will be back soon. He went out. He's going to the Garrison and fixing everything up for us. He's going to make things normal for us. Just try to go back to sleep." Shaking his head he clings to Keith. Telling him about his nightmare. Telling him of the horror of how real it was. How he could feel the pain. Each cut on his body, the bruises. The fluids. He felt so dirty. He sobbed against his shoulder. "We can get you a shower in running water when Shiro gets back okay?"

It took hours for Shiro to return. When he returned he found Lance crying in Keith's arms. He puts down the bags in hands and picks Lance up carrying him to the futon where Keith normal slept. He returns and looks at Keith. "I got my job back... I'm hooking you up with a teaching job too. If you want we can get you a house close to base that is optional but the Garrison pays for it all." Keith looks up at him and nods. Kicking his feet up. "We'll be able to provide for ourselves for however long we stay on earth. We should get him some help." Shiro takes a seat beside Keith and throws his head back. Tired already. "We should take him to see Pidge. The Holts don't live that far from the Garrison. He needs the team." Keith frowns and shakes his head. Shiro rolls his eyes at this and sits up. Facing him "Hunk is still in the castle all we have left is us and Pidge. He needs us."

"Needs us? He doesn't even trust us! After all these years of being a team he still doesn't believe we care about him."

"Can you blame him?" Keith's eyes go wide and he glares at Shiro. He scoffs and flips him off. How dare Shiro say that to him? He's always cared about Lance since the beginning. He's the one that convinced Red to let Lance pilot her by bragging about how great Lance is to her. He's been the one pushing to help Lance despite Lance being stubborn. Keith rolls over keeping his back to him. "Keith, don't even try to fake sleep. Either way we need to go to Pidge's house because you need to shower. It's been three days and we are in the desert." Sighing he shakes his head again. Shiro has a point.

"Let's wait until tomorrow okay?" Shiro sighs and pushes him to the side so he can lay back on the couch too.

Keith wakes up to a completely empty shack. It sets him into a panic. He shoots up and searches the whole place. Lance is nowhere to be seen. He sticks his head out the window and see's that the blue Lion is still outside. Lance must be close by. Keith puts his shoes on and grabs his blade running out the door as fast as he can. Looking around again. He turns on his heel to go inside. He has to call Shiro and say he can't find-

Lance in on the front porch reading a book. Keith sighs in relief and takes a seat on the stairs beside him. Sitting in silence as he tries to calm down. He doesn't understand why he was so scared. Where could Lance have gone? It would have taken a few hours to walk to the Garrison. It would have taken weeks for him to walk to Miami to be with his family. He takes a deep breath and looks over at Lance. "After we take showers…Is there anything you want to do?" He wants Lance to choose. He wants him to trust him again. Wait. Did Lance ever Trust him? Did he ever consider Keith his friend? Lance shuts the book in his hands and looks over at Keith. Biting his lip. Thinking about it.

"I wanna go out…There are so many food places I miss. Hunk and I would sneak out after lights went out and we would hit up the food trucks..." Keith nods. He expected Lance to say he wanted to go home. This was progress. The two go back inside and grab a spare change of clothes. They get on Keith's bike and drive off. Shiro gave him the directions to the Holt's earlier. He should already be there. Keith parks in their backyard right next to Green and makes his way inside. Spotting Pidge on the couch with a dog. "Pidgeon." She looks up and stands up.

"You both fucking smell." She shakes her head and hugs the two anyway. "Lance you can bathe first, it's up the stairs and at the very end of the hall." He nods and eyes the two other Paladins. "Knock first, Shiro might be taking a dump, Matt dared him to eat eggs with a cup of hot sauce on the side. Those two never change." Lance chuckles and nods making his way up the stairs. He stands outside the door and takes a deep breath. Knocking roughly. He gets no reply so he slips inside the bathroom. There's a shower and a tub. He eyes the two. Figuring out which one seems better. As he takes his clothes off he chooses the shower. He'll take too long in the tub and they'll think he drowned or something.

The water feels nice on his skin. Being able to wash all the dirt off his skin. His hair is clean. Everything feels better like this. He takes his time getting dressed. This is the first real alone time he has gotten since getting back on earth and he is going to savor it. Looking in the mirror he pulls at his face. He really needs to get back into routine. He has eye bags that need to disappear fast because boy are they ugly. Lance walks down the stairs to see Matt and Shiro wrestling on the floor. How can they go back into the way they were? They were both prisoners. They were both the most like Lance. How can they go back to a normal life when Lance can only sit back and cry? Clearing his throat they look up and Keith walks past him. It's his turn to shower now. They'll leave to go out once Keith is dressed.


	9. Chapter 9

While Keith is in the shower Lance sits on the couch with Pidge and the dog, watching Shiro and Matt wrestle on the rug. The dog lays her head on his lap and he places with her pointed ears. "What are they even fighting over?"

"Shiro bought Swiss rolls and Matt ate them." Lance snorts and curls up with the dog kissing her nose softly. It takes some time for the two to stop wrestling and it takes even longer for Keith to get out of the shower. Or bath whichever one he decided to get in. When Keith comes downstairs Lance sighs as he pulls away from the dog. He was finally starting to get comfortable. He probably would have fallen asleep if Keith had taken any longer in there. They put their shoes on and leave through the front door. Walking down the sidewalk. Lance groans.

"Man it's such a long walk to town. Why can't we take your bike?" Keith shrugs and pockets his hands looking over at Lance.

"My bike is illegal. We have barely been on Earth. I do not want to get arrested already." Lance huffs and they keep walking. The sun bothering the crap out of him. This boy might be Cuban, go to Cuba every summer, but unless he is tanning he hates the damn sun. He hates being sweaty. It's gross and he hates the way it makes his skin feel. The whole time they are walking Lance complains. Keith would tell him to shut up but it's good. This is the old Lance and Keith isn't going to be the one to ruin that. Once they get downtown they go into some random gas station to buy drinks. Lance lays in a patch of grass and smiles.

"Finally..." Keith stands beside him and opens his ice tea for Lance. Bending down to give it to him. He drinks his own and waits for Lance to stand before starting to walk off again. He lets Lance lead the way. Keith didn't sneak out when he was in school. He only ate in the school cafeteria. He has no idea where Lance is taking him. "Man...So many places shut down... Hopefully there are some good food trucks." The two walk around for hours. Stopping wherever Lance drags him. They go for ice cream. For pizza. They get coffee at-

"Starbucks? Really Lance? I can't believe this."

"What? It's good!" They sit down at a table as they wait for their names to be called out. Lance ordered them drinks. He huffs and breaks his cookie in half. Giving the other half to Keith.

" _Lance!"_ He shoots up and goes to the counter. He takes his drink and smiles at the barista. "Hey... You're McClain right? Dude where did you disappear to? The whole school talked about you disappearing. My sister went to school with you." He blinks and rubs the back of his neck awkwardly.

"Ran away, school... wasn't my thing. I uh...Traveled with some friends for a few years."

"Well...good luck man." He nods and sits back down with Keith who is eating the cookie, Lance's half already gone. That bastard. _"Qu...Queef?"_ They both choke on their food and Lance bursts out in laughter.

"I didn't think she would actually do it!" Keith glares at him and stands up taking the drink and sitting back down. "Don't give me that look! It's funny give me it." He reaches out into his pocket and takes a phone out. Taking a photo of the drink with Keith sitting in the back. He hands the drink back and sips on his own. They relax in the star bucks for a bit longer before leaving. "We have three more food places to go." Keith looks at him weirdly.

"You had two ice cream sandwiches, a whole personal pizza. A sticky bun and Starbucks. How do you have room for three more places?" Lance shakes his head and finishes off his drink.

"We had food goo and alien food for years, this past year I only enjoyed the food because it...it was all I had." Lance sighs and shakes his head. Not wanting to ruin this good vibe they have going. "I'm ready to eat as much junk as possible thank God you have a credit card." Lance too happy to question how he got the card in the first place. Keith nods and looks around.

"Where to now?" Lance grins and grabs his hand.

"Pizza again?" Keith groans as Lance drags him inside the pizzeria.

"We aren't here for Pizza we are here for garlic knots and cannolis." Keith sighs as they sit at a booth. A waiter comes up and Lance orders for them. He chuckles and lays his head down on the table. "This place has the best chocolate cannolis ever. You only ever have to buy one because they are huge!" Keith nods and watches Lance. His own smile forming. It's nice to see Lance excited. To see him happy. Lance doesn't hesitate to eat the second their food gets to their table. Keith stares at the cannoli. It's practically the size of his face. Lance looks at Keith and laughs. "Split it with me. It's the best."

Using his fork to cut into it he slides Keith the other half. Keith watches Lance eat trying his best to hold back his smile. They stay in the pizzeria for a bit longer even after finishing the food. Lance groaning about his food baby. How he knows he is going to pass out once they get back home. "What happened to the other places you wanted to hit up?" Lance glares at him and stands up.

"Mama didn't raise a quitter." He huffs and grabs Keith's wrist having already paid they walked out the door. Lance tiredly shuffling around town. Keith stops in the middle of the sidewalk.

"Lance, come on we still have to walk back and I am not carrying you. We can continue tomorrow, I bet if we asked we could sleep at Shiro's old place." Lance stares at him for a moment and sighs. Nodding. His stomach is bloated. Going back seems like a smart idea.

"What do you mean Shiro's old place?" They look around. Finding out exactly where they are so they can walk back to the Holts.

"Shiro used to teach at the Garrison, the thing with working there is either you live in the garrison in your own quarter or they pay for your house on a base close to the school like they do for Army families. Shiro lives pretty close to the Holts now that he got his house back. It's also how we've been paying for this food. He got a card from the Garrison that lets him buy whatever because of how they lied about Kerberos." He sighs and looks at Lance who looks like he is ready to fall asleep into a deep food coma just standing there. He stands in front of Lance and crouches down. Screw it he is carrying Lance back. As Lance hops on he mutters an apology resting his head on his shoulder as Keith walks. "You know soon we won't have to walk everywhere. Shiro got me a job at the garrison, I'm gonna teach and get us a hou-"

"You're gonna teach? No way. Lucky you man. Don't even have to go to college and you get a government job that pays well." Lance flashes and smile at him. Today is going by real well for them. The sun has started to fall and its dark by the time they arrive at the Holts. Shiro is sitting on the porch with the dog and Matt talking away. Lance is asleep already on Keith's back. Keith carefully sits Lance down in a chair and looks over at Shiro.

"Do you mind if we crash at your place so we don't have to drive back to the shack only to come back tomorrow. This one is going to need a shower and a toilet to barf in, in the morning." Matt and Shiro look at each other and nod in silence. Shiro steps down and picks up Lance carrying him off. Keith moves into the Holt's back yard and pulls his bike out driving it to Shiro's home. He parks it in the garage and slips inside where Shiro is laying Lance on the couch. The two look at each other and sigh.

"You both can sleep in my room okay?"

And boy was Keith right. Keith woke up to go to the bathroom only to find Shiro rubbing Lance's back as he continued to vomit into the toilet. He sighs and leans against the door frame. Taking a deep breath he moved over into the kitchen grabbing a glass of water for Lance. He makes his way back to the bathroom and places the cup on the sink moving back to the bedroom to make the bed. Shiro let them sleep in the bed and he slept on the couch. It's a one level house. It's not like Shiro needed multiple rooms. Before he disappeared he spent most of his time in the shack before bringing Keith over to the house to shower and stay clean only to make him sign up for the garrison so he would have a stable place to live.

Everything is back in place by the time Lance returns to the room. Looking tired and dead. He puts the glass on the night stand and looks at Keith. "Thanks." He nods and sits on the bed as Lance crawls back in under the blanket. Keith will let him go back to sleep. It's early besides if it wasn't for the fact that he had to go to the bathroom he wouldn't have woken up. Leaving Lance to sleep again he walks out the room and watches Shiro clean the toilet.

"How much did he drink last night?" Keith scoffs and starts the water in the shower. Might as well take one now while he is in here. He peels off his shirt and his pants. Shiro looks away and Keith rolls his eyes. It's not like Shiro hasn't seen him naked before.

"He didn't he just over ate." He takes off his boxers and steps into the shower scrubbing up real fast. Shiro leaves and then comes back. Placing a towel and a set of clothes on the sink for him. "Thanks again for letting us crash here." He says stepping out and grabbing the towel wrapping it around his waist as he pulls the shirt over his head. Once dressed Keith walks back to the room and sits on the edge of the bed where Lance is lying. "You sure you want to continue today? We could just go back and continue another time. We have plenty of time on our hands now." Lance rolls onto his side and shakes his head curling up, hiding under the blanket. Keith laughs and lays back looking out the window.

The foodie adventure can wait.

Once Lance wakes up again he takes another shower and they get on Keith's bike and go back to the shack. The tension has died down. Living together was easy. It's not like they hadn't been living in space together for years. But this was different. This was on earth. Where they had to work in order for them to survive. Not that they didn't work in space. Saving the universe was hard work. But now Lance could be alone. It was nice. He took hours in the day to think about what he was going to do. What would Keith even allow him to do? He planned out ways to fix up the shack if they were to ever need it after they move into their new home. Maybe he'll plant some fuzzy cacti and succulents. They are in the desert. It would be okay. It keeps him busy while Keith is at work. It keeps him from thinking of all the bad. It keeps him from thinking of _that_ man so Keith doesn't have to come home to Lance sobbing.

Lance is alone most of the day while Keith is stuck at work. He enjoys being able to think but really he wants the company of his family. Keith really only comes back to check on Lance. Making sure he is okay and nothing bad has happened. He tells him of the stupid things his students say, gives him the letters his mother writes so he can write back, he tells Lance how Pidge went back to school without a fake identity and how she is in one of his classes. He tells him how there's this nice house for sale and he is thinking of getting it for them. "Spring break is coming up for the students so we have off, is there anything you want to do before we move in Lance?"

"I lived in Florida my whole life but I have never been to Disney…"

The two sit down and start planning this. The trip. What they want to do when they get there. How long will they be staying? Where they will be staying. Everything. Its Lance's first time going to Disney Keith wants it to be perfect. Sure it is Keith's first too but this is different. Lance is excited. He is happy and it's so nice to have the old playful Lance back. They order lunch and get back to planning. Shiro comes over to give them the pizza they ordered and to check on them. Helping with the planning. How they plan to stay in the resort hotels. They'll be there for a week.

"You know...If you haven't been to Disney that means your family hasn't been either. We can take them with us too if you want." Lance smiles at their to do list and looks at Keith. Nodding his head.

"I bet they would love that."

All had been peaceful in the McClain household. In Miami they were already on school break. It was quiet. It was calm. No one expected the door to get swung open when Lance kicks it and Keith walks in. "We are going to Disney!" Leo drops his Wii remote and Anna starts screaming running up and wrapping her arms around her older brother. Lance spins her around and walks up to his mother who is reading on the couch. "Mama...Let's go to Disney." She takes a deep breath and reaches up to stroke his cheek.

"Let us call off of work first, Lance..." He leans into his mother's touch and smiles looking back at Keith happily. She's right. His father needs to call off of work. So does Marquis and Maria. They have lives outside of Lance. They do. Once everyone has their days off they book their flights. Their rooms. They finally get everything set up. They update the to do list thanks to Anna. A week of festivities with the McClains. What the hell did Keith sign himself up for? Looking down at the list Keith leans against Lance.

"So we can all agree on this?" Anna cheers and wraps her arms around Keith. Looking down at the list she nods and then looks around. Thinking loudly. Her leg bobs and she hums when she is thinking. Keith chuckles and ruffles her hair. "I'm guessing there's more to do? You sure we can fit it in a week?" They get back to planning. Revising the list making sure they can fit in time to get to what everyone wants to do at least once. Anna wants to go to meet her favorite characters and go swimming with Leo.

"Anna we have a beach three minutes away from the house, go on the water rides but swimming can wait for the hotel." Lance immediately regrets pointing that out, Anna starts wrestling him to the ground tugging on his hair. Shouting about how she wants to swim. Leo talks about how he wants to hit up the rides that are notorious for making people vomit. Keith stares at him and doesn't question it. He spots Mrs. McClain staring at a magazine. The Disney catalog. Fluttering through the pages looking at the restaurants. "We...We can hit up those too if you would like." She almost drops the catalog, not knowing Keith was looking at her. "I think we are all set. You guys ready to go to Disney?" Anna jumps off of Lance and cheers.

"Now that we are rich Mama can we get a dog?" Lance huffs and stands up pulling his sister into a headlock. Keith laughs and shakes his head. Everyone goes silent and watches him. Lance's cheeks redden and he was oblivious to that fact. Keith puts the list down and stands up. Everyone disperses to start packing. Keith is happy because Lance is happy. He'll do anything at this point to help Lance. Lance moves to stand at his side and playfully shoves him.

"Thanks for this Keith...It means a lot."


	10. Chapter 10

Lance is the first one to wake up. He could barely sleep last night, too excited for the adventure to come. He wakes up Keith so they can bring the luggage to the car. "Lance…The sun isn't even up yet go back to sleep." Keith pulls him back down and puts him in a headlock not letting him leave the bed for at least another hour. Keith could barely sleep too thanks to Lance's tossing and turning. Lance manages to squirm out of his grip once Keith falls back asleep. He does it by himself. Last night they left all the luggage in the living room so it would be a quick pack and they could leave right away. The last bag is in and the sun starts to peek through the cloud. He smiles and looks up at the sky. The stars are still visible. As lovely as it is to watch them on Earth they were much prettier from the castle. Where he could watch them no matter what time it is. Taking a deep breath he turns around and spots Keith standing on the front porch. Giving him a look of displeasure he walks over and grabs his hand. "You are supposed to be asleep." Lance chuckles and shakes his head.

"Too excited. Can you really blame me? We are all going to Disney for the first time ever." He squeezes Keith's hand and walks back inside. Anna is standing at the bottom of the stairs. Smiling at him. She shuffles over and hugs both of them good morning. He sits her down at the table and starts breakfast. His mother is still asleep. He is surprised Anna is awake this early too. Slowly everyone started waking up. Lance had a small breakfast set up but everyone was too busy talking their mouths off, too excited for today to eat anything. Once Mr. McClain is awake everyone gets into the car. He'll be dropping them off at the airport. "You really can't come, Pa?" He frowns as his father helps him pull the luggage out of the car once they arrive.

He places a hand on Lance's shoulder and squeezes smiling at his son. "I am close to getting promoted; I can't miss too many days. Have fun for me okay?" Lance wraps his arms around his father and squeezes him tightly. Once everything is out he gets back into the car and drives off. Going straight to work from there. Lance and Keith drag the luggage inside as the others run off picking a spot to hang out. Their flight isn't anytime soon. They got here early so Mr. McClain could go to work after saying goodbye. They take their belongings to go get checked while everyone relaxes. Their luggage gets taken away and they move back to sit with the others. Leo took out the cards and started teaching Keith how to play sevens. Round after round Anna always wins. A few more rounds pass and Lance's head shoots up. It's time to go. They pack up real quick and go to board. Their carry-on bags get check and before they know it they are on the plane. Disney bound. It's not a long flight. But it's long enough to learn that there are so many movies Keith has never watched before. They will have to watch them when they move into the new house. Once off the plane they take a quick bus to the park and that's when everything really sets it. They are finally here. They are really at Disney world.

Completely forgetting about the luggage Lance, Leo, and Anna start to run off. Ready to adventure. Keith isn't having any of that. He bolts over and throws Anna over his shoulder. Lance and Leo look over and spot Keith glaring at them. "We have to check in to our rooms." Lance shuffles back over and Leo grumbles. Way to ruin the mood. Keith walks them to where they will be staying. They stand in front as Keith just walks inside, not fazed at all. Anna just starts screaming and runs in after him. They are staying in the castle. Lance smiles and helps drag the luggage in alongside Marquis. They check in and are led to their rooms. Lance runs off but Keith has to stop him again. "You and I are sharing a room." Lance sticks his tongue out and follows him into their room. It's huge. It's beautiful. The balcony is amazing. They have a view of the castle. Lance jumps onto the bed and laughs. He can't wait for the adventure to start. Keith is just standing in the doorway talking to Mrs. McClain. Lance smiles and unpacks his bags Keith comes over and helps him out.

As they unpack Lance feels a heavy weight on his shoulders he looks over and sees Anna holding onto him tightly. He pats her arms and stands up dropping her onto the bed. He chuckles and grabs the small notebook. The to-do list. Keith took planning this very seriously. Slowly everyone starts filing into their room. Sitting on the bed. Once they are done Lance stands back up and looks at his family. "Let's go meet some princesses." Anna screams and Leo groans as they move out of the room. Ready for the fun to really begin. They split off into groups. Leo runs off with Marquis and Marina. Anna sticks with Lance and Keith alongside Mrs. McClain. Lance carries Anna on his shoulders as they walk around the park with their books out. Stopping at every character they see. They wait in lines for hours at a time ready to meet the special characters that don't normally get to walk around.

First stop is Ariel. Anna sits on her lap, or tail whatever it is, and Lance takes some photos and Keith stays at his side as they talk. "Your name is Anna? All my sisters have A's for their names too; maybe you are one of my long lost sisters. Did Ursula give you magic to have legs too?" Anna giggles and shakes her head.

"Sometimes I wish I was a mermaid, I love swimming. But I am happy I have working legs."

"Why is that?"

"Because without legs I could never ice skate with my family." Lance smiles and crosses his arms over his chest. Keith takes a deep breath and steps forward handing Anna the book. "Ooh can you sign this for me?" And they are on their way. Next stop.

"Anna can't Tinkerbell and the fairies wait, they are so far away." Anna whines and continues to pull on Lance's arm. Keith looks down at the map leading them to Pixie hollow. Anna sticks her tongue out and holds onto Keith's arm instead leaving Lance with their mother. "Are...Are you having fun Mama?" He looks down at the older woman and leans against her.

"I am, I'm excited to go to the cafes around here." Lance presses a kiss to her head and takes her hand. He might be in his twenties but he will always hold his mother's hand. She is his favorite person. Lance squeezes her arm and they walk up to Keith who is watching Anna talk to her favorite fairy. Periwinkle. She turns around and smiles at Lance. Tears in her eyes. She runs over and grabs his hand.

"She must be new, she wasn't in the pamphlet." Anna rushes him over and continues talking to the winter fairy. They even have replicas of the snow maker from the movie and frozen flowers. Lance continues taking photos. He is so going to make a scrapbook of all of this when they go home. They spend just a bit longer in there before heading off. One more stop of characters to see.

Frozen. Lance sighs and glares at his little sister. This is going to be deadly. It's too hot for this line. Keith comes to stand with them in line but Lance takes his hand squeezing it. "Go hang out with my mom; this is to meet Elsa it's going to take until lunch time." Nodding Keith walks out of the line and Lance puts Anna down.

His sister squeezes his hand and looks up at him. "Do you think I'm gonna be prettier that Princess Anna?" Lance frowns and bends down pushing her bangs to the side. He smiles and kisses her forehead.

"You are the prettiest princess ever." She smiles and Lance scoops her back up as they walk inside. He sighs in relief as the cold air hits them. He walks up to the princesses, correction princess and queen, and puts Anna down. She runs up to them and Lance sets up the camera. Smiling at his little sister how happy she is. How much fun she is having.

" _Your name is Anna too? Woah and you have braids just like mine, much prettier though."_ He looks up as Anna pulls him forward.

"Lance did them for me, he always does." his cheeks reddened and he ruffles the top of her head.

"Oh you should teach me how to braid like that; even with magic I can't be that good." Lance blinks and rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. Not knowing how to respond to that. He looks back at his sister and smiles as the girls continue to talk to each other. Out of his bag he pulls out both of their note books for them to sign. Princess Anna signs their book first and then Elsa. She scribbles down something else by the autograph. "This is the number to the palace, call me and you can teach me to braid like that." He stares at her with wide eyes, even the princess is staring at her. He nods his head and walks out face incredibly red.

They walk around for a bit before they spot that everyone has gathered back together and started eating at one of the shops. They walk in and sit down as his mother continues to teach Keith more Spanish. Keith slides him a plate. "I got you a sandwich." He looks down and takes a big bite. It takes so goo- "Are you okay you're really red." And he starts to choke. Keith starts patting his back trying to help him as he starts drinking some of Keith's soda.

"Queen Elsa gave Lance her number!"

"She what?" Keith stops and stares at the little girl that just laughing at his. Lance clears his throat and sighs laying his head back. Way to almost kill him, Keith. "Did she really?" He nods and chuckles going back to his sandwich.

"Way to go Lance, even a queen wants to date you."

"Wouldn't be the first time royalty fell in love with my beautiful face." He feels Keith tense up beside him and he frowns whispering an apology. He sighs and looks outside at the people having fun running around in the sun. "What's up next Keith?" He pulls out the list and flips through it. Crossing things off.

"The candy-cane place from Diners Drive-ins and Dives,-"

"Guy Fieri sucks!" Leo interrupts

"- then to the hotel to go swimming before dinner then free range. We are hitting up the rides tomorrow."

Lance has such a good day today. He holds his mug of coffee close to his face as he sits on the balcony. Keith is already asleep in bed. He just watches the stars and the beautiful lights that run all throughout the park. Setting down his now empty coffee cup he grabs a pair of shorts and moves to the bathroom. He steps into the shower and scrubs down. Washing off all the sweat and dirt. Once clean he checks the time. It's already one in the morning but all this excitement is keeping him up. He steps out and fills up the tub wrapping a towel around his waist as he steps out going back into his bag to grab his beauty supplies. Might as well pamper himself while he is awake. Walking back into the bathroom he puts on a sheet mask and drops a bath bomb into the hot water turning the faucet off as he slips down to his shoulders. He hums and shuts his eyes. Relaxing. He could get used to this. He deserves this. He deserves to be happy. Once the temperature of the water starts to drop he steps out and dries off. Lance peels the mask off and throws it into the trash. He rubs his face and shuts the door behind him. Lance takes a deep breath and moves over to the bed turning off the light on the night side table as he slips off to sleep feeling go about the days to come.

That is until he feels himself being shaken away. He looks up. His heart is pounding. He's scared. Lance curls up into a ball and holds onto Keith who was the one shaking him. "Lance you were crying and freaking out...What's wrong?" He shakes his head and bites his lip. Trying to calm himself down. Keith wraps his arms around Lance and rubs his back. Swaying side to side. "Another nightmare?" He nods and looks up at Keith. Keith brings his thumbs to his cheeks and dries his tears. "Let's get you washed up, you are all sweaty." Sighing Lance looks over at the clock. Almost three hours have passed. It's nearing four in the morning. They stand up and go to the bathroom. Keith has to join him in the bath to make sure he doesn't do anything reckless. They don't tell the others. They just...go back to sleep in each other's arms.


	11. Chapter 11

When his eyes open he feels finger's carding through his hair. He looks up and finds Keith playing with his hair as he watches the television. Lance takes a deep breath before slowly sitting up rubbing at his eyes. "Morning Lance, how are you feeling?" He shrugs his shoulders and slips out of bed grabbing some fresh clothes. Lance moves to the bathroom to get changed and then steps back out taking a seat on the edge of the bed. Keith watches him for a moment before standing. "Let's go get the others and eat breakfast." Standing up slowly Lance follows him out the room walking through the halls to the other rooms. Walking towards them is Marquis and Leo. They wave and stop outside Mrs. McClain's room.

"Marq and I got kicked out because the girls are getting dressed." Lance chuckles and ruffles Leo's hair as they wait for the others to come out. Anna rushes out and jumps into Lance's arms making him stumble and use his back against the wall for support. He puts her down and looks over at his mother. Marina follows after and they walk down heading down to the diner to eat. Their guide spots them and leads the way. They take their seats in the booth and look down at the menus handed to them.

"Don't get anything too crazy okay?" Lance frowns at his mother and puts his menu down placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Mama let them get what they want, we can afford it." She looks down at the menu and frowns back at her son. Everything is so expensive she is unsure of it. Lance takes a deep breath and squeezes her shoulder flashing a reassuring smile. Shaking her head she looks back at her menu figuring out what she wants for breakfast. Lance knows his mother was excited to try the different cafes in the park and he was not going to stop her from going to every single one she wanted. No matter the cost. Their waitress comes back with their drinks and gets the rest of their orders. As they order Lance collects the menus to make it easier for the waitress to take them away.

"Anna what did you get?" He looks up from the pile of menus as he hands them to the waitress and turns his head to Keith. Anna sits up and leans on the table to look at him too.

"I got waffles with ice cream on it with lots of strawberries and Bananas." She smiles and taps on the table excited to eat as she sips on her orange juice. Keith ruffles her hair and looks back at Lance. They make eye contact and Lance snaps his head away awkwardly. Keith places a hand on his lap and squeezes his hand reassuringly going back to talk to the others. "Keef-"

 _"Keith."_

"Keith what did you get?" Anna sticks his tongue out at Keith and huffs. "I bet what I got is much more yummier than yours."

"I got Breakfast potatoes pancakes and bacon." He looks up as their waitress arrives with some of their things. Placing their plates down before walking off and coming back with the rest. Anna cheers as she sees her food arrives. The table goes quiet as they eat. Too busy shoving food into their mouths to speak. Lance stares down at his pancakes and hums. They made it into a smiley face with ice cream for eyes. He starts to eat and hums. He looks up and everyone has finished already. He just started. Keith looks at him with a frown. "You okay?" Lance nods and looks back at his food.

"Just give me a moment. I'll finish up soon and then we can check the list of activities. "Keith places a hand on his shoulder and nods. As Lance eats their plates get taken away. Until he is the last one. They stand up and Keith walks off to pay the bill. Lance follows after him. Looking down like some sort of lost puppy. Keith stops. Making Lance bump into him. The Cuban looks up and stares at him. They stare at each other and Lance sighs. He can hear Keith in his thoughts. "Nothing is wrong, buddy. Just tired from last night."

"From last night? You guys get freaky?" The two Paladins look down with red faces. It's Leo.

Lance scoops the younger boy up and digs his knuckles into his head roughly running up to their mother. "Mom Leo made a sex joke!" She snaps her head at them and pulls on both of her son's ears. "W-Why am I getting hurt too?" Keith laughs and swipes his card, paying for breakfast before walking back to the McClains. Pulling his list out from his pocket he looks down.

"You guys ready to go on some rides?" Anna walks up to him with a smile and Keith lifts her onto his shoulders walking out of the diner. Waving goodbye to their guide. Off to the amusement park they go. Keith rides on all the kiddie rides with Anna because she is still too short to ride the other rides with Lance and Leo who have completely abandoned them to get to the rides notorious for making people vomit. Looking down at Anna as he lets her drive the bumper cart he smiles. This is Lance's family. These are the people he loves, the people who love him. Lance seems to be having a fun time with them. It's nice to see him like this. He doesn't plan on taking him away anytime soon. He isn't going to be a party pooper. The one that makes Lance miserable. Today is going to be packed with fun.

They exit the bumper carts and move around. Anna resting on his shoulders. Tired and hungry. Moving over to one of the rides they spot Mrs. McClain. Keith walks over and sits down now holding Anna in his arms. "Mrs. McClain? Anna is already hungry; would you like to come with us to one of the cafes?" The woman looks up and stands smiling at the two.

"I'd love that." She wraps her arm around his and pinches her daughter's cheek. Together they walk out of the theme park and walk into the first place they find. Anna is the one who spotted it. She squirmed out of Keith's hold as if she was never tired and ran over to get inside. "Churros? Why doesn't she just wait until we find Lance and he can make them? He makes the best ones." She smiles down at her hands as they walk into the cafe taking a seat to where Anna leads them. "Keith?" The paladin looks down at the shorter woman and tilts his head to the side. She looks at him and smiles, Keith frowns as he spots tears threatening to spill from her eyes, "Thank you for taking care of my boy, for everything." He presses his hand on her shoulder and squeezes.

"Mrs...Please do not thank me. I was a bad teammate who let bad happen to him and I-"

"You brought him back. You saved him. The past is the past; there was nothing you could do. Everything is okay now. Now let's enjoy the time we have now. Don't you dare cry too." He blinks as Mrs. McClain dries the tears he didn't know had formed. A waitress comes up and smiles. She hands them menus and Anna takes them away making the two adults laugh.

"We want...Five Mickey churros and a cookies and cream churro bowl." Keith shakes his head and rests his chin on his hand.

"Anna why do I have a feeling you've been waiting for this day for a long time." He chuckles and looks out the window only to look down at the youngest McClain.

"One of our skating contests was supposed to be held here...My friends and I made a list of things we wanted to try. But it was the day of Lance's birthday and I wanted to be home for it so I didn't go." He blinks and frowns. Lance disappearing forced the kids to mature when it was too early. They didn't get the chance to be kids just like Keith.

"Well, save some room for other stuff we still have plenty of places to go to while we are here. There is still the rest of the week too."

The three hit up some shops until they find Leo and Lance chasing each other with water guns. Anna runs through the crowd and jumps onto Lance knocking him over. "Anna be careful!" Keith shouts out and follows after her. Lance is rubbing at his arm which is scraped up and is just starting to bleed. Keith sighs and reaches into his pocket pulling a used napkin out to clean the wound.

"Keith buddy its okay, what's one more battle scar going to do to me?" Keith glares at him and Lance looks away standing up. "I've had worse, remember that time Sendak got into the castle?" Keith sighs and nods.

"That was so long ago, you claimed to shoot his arm off and Pidge was angry at you for so long because it was her who sliced it off." Lance shoves him and picks up the water gun. Shooting Keith right in the face.

"It was to make a point that I did more than you did in that fight." Anna chuckles and hugs her older brother. Lance pats her head and looks at the sky. "I wonder how everyone is doing. They need to visit..." Keith nods and picks Anna back up. Back to his shoulders she goes. "Let's go find everyone." It takes a while to find Marquis and Marina. They spot them in line for a ride. Lance wanted to ride some of the crazy ones with Keith. Getting off the ride they spot a clock. There isn't enough time to hit up every ride. They will continue tomorrow. They use the rest of the day to relax and go into gift shops. His mother and Keith are constantly at each other's side. Anna jogs up to Lance and smiles.

"Are you and Keith together?" His face reddens and Leo starts laughing. Lance glares at him and shakes his head at his sister. "Oh. Okay just asking." She runs back up to Keith and climbs up his back. Lance can't look at his younger brother who won't stop laughing at the situation. He pushes him forward and falls back from the group. Thinking. Anna thinks they are together. Leo made a joke about them. Even the team used to tease him about how calling their friendship a rivalry was just his way of hiding his crush. But love.

Lance stops and frowns.

He can never love again. No one would love something so broken. Why do they even think they are together? Is it the way Keith treats him. Keith is just being nice. He is just trying to make Lance feel safe. Taking a deep breath he catches up to the rest of them. They are heading to the hotel to get changed. There is a firework showing later, they are all going to get changed into more comfortable clothing. Lance is excited. He doesn't remember the last time he ever saw fireworks. Lance sits on the edge of the bed tying his shoes as Keith puts on a fresh tank top. He looks over and chuckles. Keith is starting to burn. Standing up Lance goes into his bag and grabs the aloe and puts it on his shoulders. Keith flinches and grabs his arm pinning it behind his back and pressing him to the bed, breathing heavily. "K-Keith buddy it's just me!" Keith blinks and lets him go stepping back.

"Sorry, you scared me." Lance slumps to the floor and nods. The room feels awkward and tense. He takes a deep breath and stands up walking to the door. "You're ready?" Lance nods and leans against the door. Waiting patiently. Together the two walk out of the castle and meet up with the rest of the McClains. They make their way down to where the parade starts. Lance sways side to side. He points at the sky as a line of light shoots up. A firework. He watches and his eyes widen as it explodes. He covers his ears and drops to his knees. Shaking. All he can see is explosions. People dying. Guns firing. He curls up and looks down as he hears Keith call after him. He tugs on his leg and Keith squats down. Wiping his cheeks. "What's wrong..?" Lance shakes his head. Keith looks over at the others. They are too distracted. Keith guides him out and they head back to the castle.

Lance lays down on the bed once they are in their room. Keith sits beside him and plays with his hair. Trying to calm him down. He notices Lance falling asleep and he shakes him and he lays down in the bed under the blankets beside him. "Stay up a little longer..." He doesn't want Lance to have a nightmare. Its hours until everyone is back. Marina knocked on the door to check on them and came in seeing Lance crying still. "He's okay…We are going to bed, tell everyone he is okay too...Thank you." She nods and leaves. Going to her own room to inform the others. Keith looks down. Yeah. He's asleep now. "It's going to be okay Lance."


	12. Chapter 12

It's already the last day of the trip. Keith and Lance haven't said a word about the fireworks to the rest of the family. The plan is to hit up everything they want to do that time had run out for from before. They stay for one more night and head back to the plane. Lance and Keith break off from the other's. He drags Keith off to places good to take photos of the scenery. Things to just sit back and remember when he isn't feeling well. Things to remind him that life is getting better. That when they head to dinner tonight for the last time in Disney that the fun isn't over. They can still have fun when they head back home. At least that's what he thought.

When they got back home everyone crashed on the couches while Keith and Lance took the lions back to the shack. Lance is the first to just fall onto the futon in the main area. Keith grabs their stuff from the lions and brings it inside. Watching Lance who is starting to fall asleep. "Did you have fun?" He flinches and looks away from Lance nodding his head at the question. "Anna really likes you and she is very picky about boys." Keith snorts and takes a seat beside him. Fingers running through Lance's hair. He's been doing that a lot lately. Lance isn't complaining though.

"I heard what she said to you about us, she didn't believe you so she asked me." Lance tense up and looks down. Face warming up.

"She did that to everyone that came over to my house, she even asked Hunk that." He laughs awkwardly. Trying to push it off as a joke. Not wanting him to realize how embarrassed he really was. He doesn't want to talk about it. Besides you can't be with someone if they don't care about you, at least. You shouldn't.

Keith is back to work the next day. Lance stays behind and waits until he comes back. That's how it is for weeks. Just waiting at the shack for Keith to come back. When he comes home one day Shiro is at his side. He knows what this is about. Shiro drives them back into town and Lance sighs and steps out fidgeting. He takes a deep breath and steps back. "You both work for the Garrison. Just get a place on base. Don't buy a house just because of me..I can just go back to my family. You don't need to bother yourself with me."

"How long is it gonna take Lance? Until you believe we care about you?" Lance flinches and sighs following them around town for a while until they head over to the shack for dinner. Lance sits quietly at the table as Keith cooks for them. He is quietly eating as Shiro and Keith talk. Once he is done he throws his plate out and moves to lay on the futon, not even bothering to take a shower. He just curls up and keeps his eyes shut. Listening to the sounds the shack makes anytime someone moves. The sound of the door opening and shutting when Shiro leaves to go home. The sound of Keith sitting down and moving him so Lance's head lays on his lap. He runs his fingers through his hair and lays back beside him. "I can't speak for others but I care about you Lance. I know you care about me too." In silence they sit together until Keith gets up to take a shower.

Taking a deep breath Lance gets up and pulls the futon out a bit. Unfolding it so he can lay down more comfortably. Falling back onto the Futon he rolls a pillow under his head and curls up eyes shutting as he feels the weight change. An arm wraps around him. Keith. He takes a deep breath and rolls over, Keith flinches he must have thought Lance was asleep, "I'll...I'll move in but we have to stay on base...Somewhere next to Pidge if possible." Keith looks away and nods. Slipping his arm off of Lance.

"I can try to make that happen."

The next morning they wake up early, they go out to breakfast before getting assigned their new house. It's on the farther side of the base. Lots of officers and war vets who teach at the garrison live around here. They start loading their boxes into the front room. They want to bring everything inside before exploring. As they carry the boxes in Lance spots a very familiar face. He drops what he is holding, only to get scolded by Keith "Lance that box says fragile!" Lance runs over to the figure and quickly wraps his arms around her. Pidge. It's been too long since he has seen her. He looks down at her and smiles.

"How are you doing Lance?" He rests his head atop of her and sighs. She had such a concerned look on her face, it makes him feel like such a dick for thinking that they didn't care for him. It's all Lot- No. Don't do it Lance don't even bother thinking about that asshole. He can't hurt Lance anymore he is dead. Lance can learn to love himself and learn and accept that his friends love him too."We came to help." He looks over her and sees Matt talking to Shiro. Lance gives her one more hug before moving back to the truck to bring the boxes inside. Before they know it the living room is completely filled with furniture and boxes there's no room to walk in it. Lance slips away from the others and goes up the stairs wanting to check out their new home. He will have to call his mother after this. There's so many rooms. It's going to be just the two of them but there's five bedrooms. Keith is being too nice. Lance steps into a large room and sits on the bed. It has a roof window. A view for the stars. Yeah, this is his. He lays on the bed for a while until he hears somebody calling out for him.

Quickly he rushes down the stairs and sees Keith holding a few boxes of pizza. "What were you doing up there, come eat." Nodding he follows Keith to the backyard where he sits at the table between Shiro and Pidge a plate already in front of him. Keith tosses a slice onto his plate and serves the others.

"I picked my room already. Called dibs on the upstairs bathroom too." Keith rolls his eyes and takes a seat. "Don't roll your eyes you ass, I need all that sink space because I need to buy so many beauty supplies, I haven't broken out like this since I went through a second puberty."

"Seriously Lance you are going to talk about that? Right in front of my salad?" Lance shoves her and huffs turning to look at Matt.

"That meme was from a Porno your little sister just reference porn what are you going to do about it?" Matt snorts and reaches for another slice of pizza stealing Shiro's crust with his free hand.

"Did Kate never tell you she was the one who made the meme where you would you use a screenshot of gay porn as a reaction pic." Lance stares at Pidge who has this proud grin on her face. Lance sighs and glares at her. Together they all eat and the street lights turn on as the sky darkens and the stars become more visible. Matt and Pidge are the first ones to leave. Shiro helps them clean up and stays for a bit longer, keeping the two other Paladins company as they sort through the boxes putting them in the rooms they belong in. Bringing a little bit more organization to the clusterfuck that was the livingroom. Lance sits on their couch and opens up a box, looking through it before handing things off to Keith or Shiro depending on what room the items belongs in. It wasn't much longer before Shiro decided to leave and go to his own home. Leaving the two by themselves.

Lance gets up from his spot in the living room and goes to his new room, taking a seat on the edge of it just staring at the wall. Thinking. So many years have passed since he could be comfortable living on earth. That he doesn't have to worry about the Galra any longer. Well. At least the empire. So many years and now being so close to the Garrison has made him realize. He never graduated school. Keith hasn't either but he's working there now. Without having to go to college or anything. He was kicked out of the damn place. Lance never got to graduate, he finds it ironic enough to even laugh sadly at. All those months of being bullied and being told he would drop out for being too stupid, for all those simulators he would crash. He didn't drop out. He just disappeared off the face of the planet. The solar system. Just. Light years away. For almost a decade.

Wiping his cheeks he stands up and moves to the kitchen where Keith is still putting things away, he grabs Keith's phone from his back pocket and ignores the scolding he gets for it as he sits on the front porch. He taps the screen. Hoping the number hasn't changed at all. He holds the phone to his ear and waits. Curling up around himself tightly. It takes three rings for the call to be answered. "Mama?"

"Lance? Honey it's almost midnight are you okay?" He blinks and looks over at Keith who is standing in the doorway. That means it's practically eleven here. How long was he in his bedroom? He expected her to yell at him for not calling for so long. The trip to Disney was already two months ago. But she didn't. She just wanted to make sure her son was alright. He loves his mother.

"I'm okay. I just wanted to call you and tell you we moved into a new house so Keith doesn't have to drive so long from the Garrison to come home. I just wanted you to know…" He sighs and shakes his head. "I'm gonna call you every day okay? Just so you don't have to worry if I am safe or not." Standing up Lance leans against the railing and listens to his mother ramble. She's tired but she misses her son so she won't hang up on him and he knows that. He listens to her ramble until there is a few minutes of silence. "I love you Ma'" She must have fallen asleep. He hands up and hands Keith his phone back. Keith hands him his jacket in return.

"Come on we have to put Blue and Red in the cave for now." Nodding they move over to the back yard where Keith has his bike; now that he is part of the Garrison staff he can ride it freely. Lance sits on it behind Keith and wraps his arms around him as they drive off to the desert. Lance stands in front of blue when they arrive. Smiling at her. Talking sweetly to her. They watch Keith place Red in the cave and Blue is quick to follow. The two lions lay next to each other with their particle barriers up. Staying safe and away from anyone. They keep their bayards and their helmets close by. Just incase. They doubt they'll have to return to their positions as Paladins but it's better safe than sorry. When they get home, can he call it that already they just moved into the place, they hang up their helmets and bayards in the living room getting ready for whenever the castle calls them.

Speaking of calls from the castle. It's only when Lance is walking into the living room after taking a shower that he notices his helmet talking. His eyes light up and he runs to it as he hears Coran's voice. But the Altean man stops talking. He puts the helmet on and sits on the couch. Calling him back. "Coran you there?" It beeps and he smiles laying down. The helmet resting on the pillow.

"Lance! How are you boy?" He rolls onto his side and shuts his eyes. He misses him. Coran was like his father while he was living in the castle. The two men just talk for quite some time. It must be daytime to them. Or they have the artificial sunlight up in the castle. It nice. Coran's voice helps him relax and sleep peacefully.

Lance is woken up hours later as he is carried by Keith onto his bed. He looks out the window and the sun has risen so he sits up as he is put down. He stretches and sighs looking over at the other. "Have fun at wor-" Keith is fast to cut him off.

"You were crying in your sleep. What were you dreaming about?" Was he really. He touches his face and frowns. Wet cheeks.

"I don't kn- Don't give me that look I really don't remember. I didn't know I was crying until you pointed it out!" He yells and stands up following Keith into his room. Sitting on his bed and laying back as Keith gets dressed into his work uniform. Sighing he rolls onto his side and thinks of what he wants to do to his room. What color should he paint it because it's sure is an ugly yellow at the moment. He wants to change it. He looks around the room and out the window he see's this lady walking down their street. She's heavily pregnant.

Lance's stomach starts to tense up. He's fast to grab the garbage can, he is not puking on this carpet it is such a nice carpet. Damn why didn't he pick this room. Images start to pop into his mind. He remembers now. His nightmare. Being pregnant with Lotor's baby. The baby have Galran features. He can't stop crying. Keith rushes over to help out Lance. He rubs his back and wipes his chin. "What's wrong?" Looking Lance sees is a more obvious galran version of Keith.

He _screams._

How dare he try and live a normal life. Even if Lotor is dead he will always live in Lance. Always. Lance is quick to hide in his bedroom. Locking the door behind him. Even if he wishes he had nice carpet like Keith does he is grateful he chose this one. What he thought was a closet was really his own bathroom. Now he won't have to leave the room and face that awkward mess. Keith tries to talk to him. To figure out what is wrong with Lance but he has to leave, he has to go to work. Lance only relaxes once he hears Keith bike drive off getting quieter with every second he drives away. He curls up around himself and breaks down back into a fit of tears. Why is this happening to him. What did he do wrong to deserve this?

Lance struggles to look at Keith everyday. He can't do it without some sort of Negative reaction towards him. Whether it be crying, puking in his lap, or seeing someone that isn't him that causes him to scream. He gets his nightmares again. Every night he stays up until Keith wakes up and then he goes to sleep. When the other is asleep he stays awake. Keith tries to get him to leave his room so he can at least eat but Lance won't. Lance won't even talk anymore. Even if Keith grew up in almost complete silence having this house quiet was painful to him. Where was Lance's laughter? His shitty jokes. That smile of his that would light up the room. All of it was just gone and he still had no idea what was going on. The one time he would hear Lance talk was when he was lucky enough to walk past his room and hear him talking to his mother on the phone.

Keith starts leaving food outside Lance's door. Making sure he gets food into his system not wanting to walk into the room and find Lance dead.

The only communication the two have is when Keith is leaving for work. He knocks on his door reminding him to eat breakfast and that he'll be home in a few hours. When the house is empty he knows Lance comes out because sometimes the remote to the television gets moved around or the kitchen light is on. He needs to come up with a plan to get Lance out of there. A way to get Lance to feel safe. This calls for some serious invasion of privacy. Eavesdropping. Keith wakes up earlier and puts the breakfast down spending time listening to Lance talk to his mother on the new house phone they got.

Listening to Lance tell his mother about his nightmares.

Telling her about how scared he is of Keith because he is galra. All he sees in the galra in him.

Its Allura all over again.

Keith goes to work just thinking. He talks to Shiro during lunch and comes up with an idea. An idea Shiro doesn't approve of but it's an idea nonetheless.

When Keith gets home he hears Lance running up the stairs to his room. He sighs and goes up the stairs and knocks on his door. "Lance I'm just going to get dressed and go back out okay?" Just more silence. He sighs and moves over leaning against the wall. Waiting. "I'll see you later Lance." He shuts his eyes and waits in total silence. He hears the door slowly creak open and that's when he lunges. He quickly grabs his arm and holds him down into his chest tightly turning his head so he can avoid getting punched. "Lance calm the hell down and look at me for once! It's me _Keith_. I am your friend, your teammate. I would never hurt you!" He grabs Lance's chin and turns his head to look at him. "I'm human just like you." Lance's eyes widen and tears start to form. He hides his face in Keith's shoulder and starts shaking. Keith can hear him whispering apologies one after the other. He sighs. "It's going to be okay La-"

"No it's not. I hate being like this. This shouldn't have happened. This is all my fault none of this would have happened if I didn't want to drag Hunk and Pidge to go sneak out of school to meet some babes." Keith looks down at him with a confused look.

"What the hell are you going on about?"

Lance shakes his head and clings to Keith. Breathing slowly going back to a normal pace. "On the day Shiro's pod landed on Garrison property Hunk and I went to go get Pidge who had already sneaked out. We were going to go into town and meet some hot people and go to the arcade but we hacked into- Oh its stupid forget it you get what I mean." Slowly he sits up and moves out of his hold avoiding eye contact as he moves into his bedroom. He sits on his bed and Keith follows after him.

It's hard getting back into routine. It takes another two weeks of forced communication for things to seem even remotely normal between the two Paladins.

Lance comes down for breakfast to eat with Keith for the first time in a long time. During breakfast Keith sits beside him and puts his hand on his shoulder. "I've been thinking about this. I think you should go see someone. Someone you can go talk to." Therapy. He means Therapy. Lance sighs and puts his fork down.

"They'll think I'm crazy, no one is going to believe anything that happened up there. They'll put me in a home." He frowns and shakes his head. "It's not going to happen.

"What about talking to Coran…?" Lance looks down at his lap. Thinking about it. Maybe. That does sound like a good idea. He thinks back to when Coran called him. How he helped him fall asleep that night.

"I'll think about it…" Lance turns his head and looks at the clock. He wonders what time it is over there. When it was time to sleep over here it sounded like Coran was just waking up. He is probably asleep right now. He'll stick to talking to him before bed. When Lance looks up Keith has taken his empty plate and put it in the dishwasher. Leaving to go to work through the back door. Leaving Lance alone again. This feeling is too familiar. He doesn't like it. Looking around he puts on his sneakers and walks out the front door. Walking down the street. Going wherever his feet taking him. It's a good distraction. It'll give him something to do while Keith is away. He makes a route for himself. A path for him to get used to walking. When he looks up he finds himself at park. He sighs and takes a seat in the shade. A few kids walk up to him and ask him to play cards with him.


	13. Chapter 13

Lance spent some time at the park with those kids. He's always been good with children. He taught them how to play sevens only to be called an old man. "Don't call me old you guys are the weird ones who even plays with real cards anymore?" He chased them around and played for a bit longer before making his way back home. As he walked home he spotted a pool. His hand went up to his chest and he squeezed his shirt. He has nothing there anymore he could go swimming if he really wanted to. He looked away and kept walking. Lance remembers being younger and not going out as often. Not going swimming for months because of the surgery not wanting people to see his fresh scars. But his body is covered in them now. What's one more going to do?

Lance gets home and moves over to the fridge grabbing a nice cold water bottle only to sit down in front of the fan for a bit as he relaxes. His eyes move over to the clock and sighs. Keith isn't going to be home anytime soon. He stands up and grabs a random book and moves to sit on the porch swing. Reading makes the time go by a little faster. It's hard to keep track of time when you have gone to a new world in your mind. A soft beeping snaps him out and then a voice. His helmet! Putting the book down Lance moves over and grabs his helmet. Listening in.

" _Lance you awake..? Are you even home?"_

"Hunk, buddy I'm here. What are you doing up big guy? The wife keeping you up." He moves back to the swing and sits back holding his helmet in his lap.

" _Shay isn't my wife, not yet at least."_ Lance chuckles and reaches over for the book, flipping back to the page he left off at. The last few words suddenly sink in. _Not yet at least._ His eyes widen and god he wishes he could talk to Hunk face to face. Maybe shake him around because this is incredible news.

"Not yet? Did you pop the question to her?" He can hear hunk moving around. Perhaps getting out of the bed and moving to a different room.

" _No I have no idea how Balmerian courting is supposed to work and if I ask her family they'll spill the beans Lance."_ Propping his feet up he nods and lays his head back swaying side to side. The swing squeaking when he shifts.

"Dude you literally sleep in the same bed as her, just ask her to marry you or I will get Mama up in space and she will lecture you herself." Hunk goes silent on the other line causing Lance to laugh. His chest feels warm. Today is off to a good start.

" _Lance that is not cool your mom would totally do that."_ There's more footsteps and a soft voice. Allura. He hasn't heard her voice in a while. _"She'd probably yell at me so loud Shay would hear it and that's how she would find out."_

" _What would I find out."_ Lance freezes up and looks down at his helmet. Oh shit. He smirks and sits up.

"Shay Hunk wants t-"

" _Lance shut up! It's nothing it's just a surprise sweetie."_ Sweetie. How cute. _"Well...I'm going to go back to sleep I just wanted to check on you. Call me if you need anything Lance. I'm just one wormhole away."_

"Goodnight Hunk." The helmet beeps for a moment and then there is silence. Lance goes back to his book and sighs. His helmet falls to the porch and he finishes it up. It wasn't a big book. It was one of those chicken soup books and he was tired of it so he went back inside and sits in front of the book shelf. A burnt book catching his eye. He reaches out and holds it close. It's all in Japanese he can't read any of it and it doesn't help that a lot of it is completely burnt. He flips to the first page. "A baby book.." this must be Keith's. Lance flinches as he feels his helmet being placed on his head. He looks up, its Keith, and points at the book. "Can you read this." Keith bends down and looks at the photo and nods.

"It says _Keita no saisho no ha._ Keita's first tooth." Lance tilts his head to the side and looks at the photos.

"Keita?"

"Yeah it's my name. It means big blessing..." Keith's name isn't Keith? He shakes his head and looks over at him. Keith- Keita- No Keith..? Keith takes the book from him and flips through the pages. "When I was little I had horrible handwriting and I only wrote in all capitals. My teachers thought my A was an H and they thought it was me giving myself an Americanized nickname. I didn't care because at first I thought it was them giving me a nickname. My dad thought it was funny so it just...Stuck. I remember when Shiro found out it was Keita. It was super funny You don't have to stop calling me Keith if you want I'm okay with anything. Shiro only calls me it when he is really angry."

Keith stands up and puts the book back down in Lance's hands and points at more photos. Translating the notes for Lance. "I guess-" Keith looks down at him. "-we are even for seeing each other's baby photos." Nodding Keith stands up and moves up the stairs finally getting out of his work Uniform. It's almost time to eat dinner already?

Things aren't getting any better. Things being Lance's mental health. Their trust for each other. Things really aren't getting better if anything they are getting worse. Small things were causing Lance to break down and bring him into a panic attack. It was like when they saved him for the first time over again. It was sad and it only gave Keith a few options to solve it. Keith would have to come home during his lunches and prep periods to check on Lance. He can't get away with it for much longer. He would ask Pidge to stay at the house but she is back in school trying to finish her education and get an actual job. Not that saving the Universe isn't a real job. It's just a job nobody on the planet earth can know about other than the other Paladins.

So he asks the next best Holt. Matt stops by the house and sits with Lance. Lance mostly spends the whole day sleeping so it's an easy babysitting job. Sometimes they go on walks and Matt brings Bae Bae, the Holt family dog, along with him. Other times Matt takes him over to the Holt household and it makes Mrs. Holt very happy. To really meet him after all the stories she has been told. Whenever he is over there he cuddles the dog on the couch all day. But on days when Keith is home he stays in his room, avoiding looking at Keith. He scratches at his arms nervously every time he speeds past him to get away. Keith doesn't like it at all. No matter what they do no matter how distracted them keep him they never see the panic coming. They'll look away and when they look back Lance is curled up around himself his nails digging and breaking into his skin as he cries. Whispering a never ending stream of apologies.

But today he is home alone and he is finally tired of feeling this way.

He just can't do it anymore.

Lance moves up the stairs and sits in his room. His bayard in his hand. He stares down at it. Why isn't he crying. All he does is cry. But this time he isn't. Shutting his eyes he can feel his bayard change in his hands. He looks abck down at it and it's his favorite blaster. His first weapon it turned into. Taking a deep breath he brings it up. Pressing it against his temple just as Keith walks into his room. Both of their eyes go wide. Lance scrambles around and quickly puts his finger on the trigger. Only to pull it as Keith bolts towards him.

But nothing happens.

 _Of course Blue wouldn't let him kill himself._


	14. Chapter 14

It was a half day to get ready for the upcoming holiday he was going to come home and take Lance out for lunch to help him relax. But when he got home the house was quiet. Maybe Lance was napping. He walked up the stairs to check on him and this was something he didn't want to ever see. The bayard as a gun pressed to Lance's head. The look of panic in Lance's eyes as Keith started to run to his side. When Lance's eyes shut tightly as he pulled the trigger and how the panic grew in his eyes as nothing happened.

When he got to his side he smacked Lance in the face the bayard falling to his side and returning to its normal form. "What the hell were you thinking!?" He shouts shaking Lance by his shoulders as tears spill out of his own eyes falling onto Lance's cheek mixing in with Lance's. Lance's head turns away and he whispers an apology. Lance doesn't know what to do. This far wasn't planned out. None of this was planned out. This was supposed to be over. He's been alive for four minutes too many. If Blue just let him end it he wouldn't be crying. He wouldn't have to watch Keith break down in sobs in his arms.

His world starts to go quiet. His sense of hearing isn't working anymore, he can tell Keith is yelling at him but he can't hear any of it. He can only see his lips moving as Keith yells at him for- "Trying to kill yourself? How could you?!" It's loud and he sits up covering his ears as he pushes Keith away but Keith pushes him back, pinning him against the cold floor. "No you can't keep pushing me away Lance! I've lost Shiro twice. I don't want to lose you twice too!" He grabs his shirt and shakes him. Lance feels lost, all he can do is sit up and wrap his arms around Keith and whisper apologies. Together they just lay there. Lance rubbing Keith's back until he falls asleep in Lance's arms. Staying still Lance takes his turn in crying, just staring up at the ceiling. They aren't tears of sadness, it's all anger. He is so mad. Why didn't it work? Lance could have shot all the cans he wanted to but god forbid he try and shoot himself and Blue decides he is a waste of a shot. How dare she kick him out twice and then choose she cares enough to keep him alive when all he wanted was this to be over. He can't think of Lotor, of everything, if he was dead.

Lance tried to move but Keith had woken up and pushed him back down, waiting until Lance fell asleep to call up Shiro and Pidge. "Pidge just get over here you live like ten houses up- Yes I know it's late but it's Lance so get some shoes on."

It takes a while for the two paladins to make their way over and sit on the front porch, taking in everything Keith has just told them. "He tried to what?" Keith turns his head away from Pidge who has started to cry at the news given to her and looks over at Shiro. He shakes his head. "He really tried to kill himself?" He squeezes Keith's shoulder and Keith nods.

"Why would I joke about something like this? He needs help…" They head inside and sit down. Talking. Trying to figure out a solution even if it ends up only being temporary.

When Lance wakes up his head hurts. He feels exhausted. Looking over at his bedside clock he checks the time. It's already seven. Keith should be getting ready for work if he hasn't left already. Rubbing his tired eyes he rolls onto his other side only to make eye contact with a tri-colored corgi. Startled he falls off the bed and scrambles to press up against the wall. _"I think he's awake…"_ He hears Shiro's voice from downstairs and sighs and moves closer to the dog who is just sitting there obediently. His fingers run over the vest it's- the vest _she_ is wearing. Dragging his hands over the service dog patches he smiles. She is such a fluffy dog, thank goodness they have central air. Taking a deep breath he picks her up and makes his way downstairs. Shiro and Keith are eating breakfast. "Ah, that's where she went."

"Is she yo-"

"Oh no my dog is in the yard, Keith picked her out for you."

Keith looks up from his eggs and nods digging into his pancake. "We got after work yesterday, I kept her at his house to surprise you. Shiro noticed her when he got his own dog. Her name is Chuleta, I thought you might like her." He says with his mouth full, Lance takes a seat and puts her down just staring at his lap. "She is registered under your name so you can take her with you and with us to work so go get dressed." Frowning he stands up and moves to his room. He moves through his clothes and sighs grabbing his lucky jacket. He goes back down the stairs and spots Chuleta on the couch with a large golden retriever. That must be Shiro's dog. He smiles and pets her looking around for a leash. Keith walks over and clips it to her vest. Taking her by the leash they step outside and Lance slips into Shiro's truck with Chuleta on his lap. Sitting in silence as they drive off to the Garrison.

He clings to his new dog as they continue driving. Wondering how much has the school changed since they vanished from the planet. The solar system. The entire Galaxy. It had been years. Something has to be different. Looking up he takes a deep breath. The car has stopped. Oh. They have arrived. Lance squeezes the leash and steps out only to be grabbed by Shiro who flashes the softest smile. "You going to be okay, sharpshooter?"

"I sure hope so…"

Together they walk in Lance standing at his side as his badge scans. Lance keeps his head down as Shiro waves goodbye. He has his own room to go and teach in. Lance looks up when he feels a hand on his shoulder. "Let's go before the kids get let out of meal time." He nods and looks at Chuleta whose small stubby tail won't stop wagging. They walk off and move through the hails to the science lecture halls. A bell chimes and kids are walking around. Lance picks up Chuleta and dodges the smaller figures. He forgot how excited he used to get for breakfast. How the lunch ladies were so nice and gave him extras when they could tell he was having a rough day. He wonders if anyone of them still work here. "You can put her down, we are here." Keith's voice snaps him out of his thoughts and he nods letting her go. He expected her to run around but she stayed put. At his side. What a good pup.

"Than-"

"You don't have to thank me for her. We planned on getting her for a while. They have to be trained to their owners special needs. So...so don't think it's because of last night we got her." Lance shifts awkwardly and takes a seat next to his desk once kids start filling in.

" _Morning Mr. Kogane!_ " Lance snorts. Mr. Kogane? How funny. Keith shoves him and glares hitting the top of his head with a book. It'll be so weird to watch him work as a teacher. He never thought of him as someone who would teach. At the Garrison nonetheless. It's entertaining but being surrounded by so many people all day is draining. He hates it. Not the being surrounded by people but the fact that it's draining to him. He used to love it. Love having people around him. His family is huge. He looks over at Keith and tugs on his sleeve.

"I wanna go hang out with Shiro for a bit... I'm tired." Keith frowns and nods.

"Just wait a bit longer, this period is almost done and I have students going that way anyway. They can show you the way." Lance sighs and sits on the floor with Chuleta. Cuddling into her soft fur. Waiting for the time to pass. He can hear his mother scolding him. _A watched pot never boils._ He sighs again and shuts his head pulling her close and onto his lap. His head shoots up at the sound of the bell ringing. He looks over and stands up. "Okay who here is going to Professor Shirogane's class?" A few hands raise. "Alright, I'll give you all late passes if you guide Lance to his classroom." Three students walk up and smile at the blue Paladin. "Go, tell Shiro if you do end up going home...I'll tell the holts to invite you over okay?" Lance nods and follows behind the Kids. Who just ask him a bunch of questions about Keith. He answers them, thinking it'll be funny if they torture him in class with this newfound information.

They guide him through the halls kids stopping and staring at him and Chuleta. He let's them walk in the classroom first before stepping in. "Oh, Lance what's up?" He smiles at Lance and places a hand on his shoulder.

"I was getting bored in Keith's class so your students showed me the way." Shiro squeezes his shoulder and lets him sit at his desk He lets Chuleta sit at his feet alongside Shiro's dog. He tiredly spins around in the chair and follows them to the simulator room. Not much has really changed. As the kids run through their simulator tests Shiro puts his hand on his shoulder again. Lance looks up at him. "Keith texted me saying you wanted to go home. It's almost time for lunch stay for a bit longer so you can eat." Lance sighs and moves to lean against the wall. More kids come up to him and ask him about Shiro this time.

"How do you know Mr. Shirogane?" Lance stares at the back of Shiro's head for a while. His hair is starting to grow and he has given up on the undercut he even pulled it into a very tiny pony tail just like Keith did. He smiles and looks back at the students.

"We are teammates. Teammates for years before that he was my Hero. I still try my best to make him proud but it's hard to do when he's...Him." They nod in understanding and Shiro scolds them for leaving the group that their punishment is to go up next. Lance chuckles and walks over to Shiro's side Chuleta in his arms. "So I heard Iverson got fired." Shiro nods and crosses his arms over his chest.

"Turns out once we all disappeared Iverson was trying to figure out what was really going on and wanted to get justice for the wrongdoings of the Garrison. They fired him for continuing to push the movement. That's why we got our jobs, how Keith got his job. To keep quiet about everything that happened." Lance blinks and stares up at him. Iverson tried to help them? It's hard to believe. A bell chimes and Lance looks up as the three students get out of the pod. "Good job you guys, not a single error. I seen great things happening for your team."

"I guess you could say there's a one hundred percent chance that in this reality they'll succeed." Lance whispers to Shiro whose face reddens and he turns to playfully shoves the other paladin.

"You are the worst." The two chuckle for a moment causing the students to stare up at the adults. Shiro claps his hands together and wipes a tear from his eye, from laughing too hard, and smiles. "Well, that's it for today, you guys can get out of your suits and line up before the bell rings." The kids walks out Shiro stays put and Lance's side while they have the chance. "Lance I was wondering...And no I haven't told Keith about it. Would you be happier if you went back to the castle and lived with the others?" Lance goes wide eyed and shakes his head. He would have to think about it. He doesn't want to be that far away from his family ever again. "It's just an idea, we want what's best for you." Shiro pulls him into a hug before leading him back to Keith's room so they can eat lunch together.

"You didn't go home?" Keith says as he spots Lance walking in behind Shiro.

"Always trying to get rid of me aren't you Keith?" Lance snorts and cuts Keith off before he can say anything. "Relax it's just a joke, Shiro told me to stay for lunch." Keith nods and cleans off his desk making room for them.

"Good because I ordered pizza. I'm gonna go pick it up." Keith leaves them alone in the room and Lance rests his head on the desk. Tired. He's going to go home after this. Hoping he doesn't pass out on the way there. It is a long walk. But he knows he'll be able to take the best nap afterwards.


	15. Chapter 15

When Lance got home he practically fell asleep on the couch, exhausted from walking so much. Chuleta fell asleep at his side and he used the remote to turn the air conditioner on, there was no way he was moving from the couch anytime soon. Staring at the ceiling Lance presses his palms into his eyes and bites his lip trying to keep back his emotions. He ran into Matt and Pidge on the way home they were walking their dog together. They spoke to each other for a bit but Lance lied and said he had to get home. They're so lucky after everything that has happened they get to stay together as a family. His family is states away. He wants Rebecca but she is all the way in Korea back at work. He wants his family. He wants to cry and not always be alone. He wants to loved. He misses _Lotor_. He misses the gentle touches, how he would play with his hair when they would fall asleep together. He presses a hand into his arm and scratches at the skin. The tracker is still in there. Maybe someone would come and fin-

His head shoots up at Chuleta starts barking at him. He frowns and pulls her into his arms kissing her nose as he wipes his tears. Trying to calm her down as he himself calms down. Keith was right he does need her. Slowly he stands up and moves into the kitchen to pour some water into her bowl. He'll take a nap on the couch until Keith gets home.

Lance every morning keeps himself busy by taking Chuleta on a walk around the block before heading to the Holt's. It's where he has been going when Keith is working so he isn't alone. It's just to pass the time. To keep him distracted. When he arrives Ms. Holt is the first to greet him she shows him to the back yard where she has already started to arrange the garden and wonders if Lance can help her with it. "Mom, you really have to stop using Lance as a slave-" Lance flinches at the word and looks down "-we weren't stuck up in space for almost a decade for this." Ms. Holt scoffs and glares at her daughter

"No it's fine. It keeps me busy I really don't mind." He takes a deep breath and lets Chuleta loose in the house she runs around with Bae-Bae and plays as he moves into the back yard. He grabs a watering can and waters the plant. Doing small little tasks whenever he is asked to. It feels relaxing. It feels familiar. Reminding him of the past in the way he can't get scolded for. Sometimes he helps clean the house and helps make dinner. He'll stay for dinner sometimes but only because Ms. Holt insists he does. He'll take both dogs for walks when he finds himself with nothing else to do. He keeps himself busy. Keeping his mind off of things that make him feel bad. That might make him break down.

The other's are helping a lot. Sometimes he'll sit on the porch with his helmet in his hands and Hunk will be on the other line. Not even talking directly to him to whoever is in the room they just let him listen in. As if he was up there in the castle with them. Sometimes he will hear Shay or Allura and they will say hello to him. It makes him happy even if it only lasts a few minutes at a time. Lance stays home on the weekends, Keith doesn't work on the weekends so those are the days they spend together. They hang out in the living room and watch TV while reading or playing games. He loves how when they play Mariokart he always beats Keith. "For someone who had to pilot the faster lion you sure suck at driving Keith."

Keith shoves him and glares. "It's a game it's completely different from piloting the lions!" Lance rolls his eyes and knocks Keith off the track yet again. "Lance! You were in first place now you are just being a dick!" Laughing Lance lets himself fall to last letting Keith make his way up to first once again. Keith looks so proud of himself but then it clicks. "Lance where are you- Nono _NO!_ " He puts his controller down and stands up. "I can't believe how extra you are you fell back just to blue shell me you better run!" Lance's eyes widen and he scurries away running to the kitchen.

Chuleta barks at the two men chasing each other around the house and chases them as well. This is a good day. Once Keith gets tired of chasing Lance he sits on the floor and sighs. Lance laughs and sits beside him reaching out to tug his hair. "Your mullet is growing back…" Keith looks up and lays his head on Lance's knee.

"Should I get it cut?" Lance shakes his head and slowly drags his fingers through his hair. "Okay...I guess I am letting it grow out.." Keith shuts his eyes and rolls onto his side. The two fall silent for a moment until Keith breaks said silence. "Do...Do you want to go visit your family? The summer break is starting soon so we can go back. You haven't told them yet have you?" Lance looks away and shakes his head.

"I haven't said anything to my family in months...I haven't spoken to my mom since it happened." He admits and looks down at Keith. "I think visiting them will be nice...I'll go pack." He slowly stands up being careful with Keith's head so it doesn't slam onto the floor. Lance starts up the stairs and looks through his clothes. It's going to be hot when they head to Florida, not that its not hot here in Texas its just Lance is never outside so he is always where a hoodie and only occasionally he wears shorts. He grabs a few t shirts and shorts. Throwing anything that was comfortable onto his bed. He has to go find his luggage to put this all in. Lance sits on the edge of the bed and looks down at his hands. How is he supposed to hide this from his family. His hands are all red and puffy and broken up from him biting them when he feels a break down about to happen.

His head shoots up when he hears Keith clear his throat. He frowns and hides his hands as Keith walks over. "What's the matter?" Lance shakes his head and turns his head away as Keith kneels down in front of him. Keith takes his hands and squeezes them. "How long have you been doing this?" Lance bites his lips and tries to pull them away but Keith doesn't let him. He pulls his hands to his lips and kisses each wound every tooth mark making Lance stare at him. "It's going to be okay...You don't have to tell your family if you don't want to. You don't have to tell anyone you don't want to. It's okay to hold some things back until you feel ready to let them out." Keith stands up without letting his hands go and sighs. "Now...Are you hungry I was thinking we go out to eat Italian."

"As long as you mean restaurant and not Pidge's house because I love her mom but she sucks at cooking." Keith laughs and shakes his head pulling Lance up from the bed.

"The Pizzeria we went to where we got those huge cannolis." Lance smiles and squeezes Keith's hands. "Maybe we can hit up the bike shop on the way home I want to get a sidecar for my bike for you and the dog to sit in."


	16. Chapter 16

Their flight is in a week. Keith booked it on his phone while they were at dinner. When they get home Lance starts packing again. They'll be there for the whole summer, Keith called his mother to make sure it was okay first. Lance is excited, he missed his family he needs them. His attention is taken off of packing when he hears a knocking on his door. Keith is standing in his doorway already in pajamas. "Are you coming to bed?" Lance zips the luggage shut and stands up going through his dresser and grabbing a set of clean shorts and a hoodie. He nods silently as he moves to the door. Shutting it so he can get dressed only to open it again moments later. He'll shower in the morning, for now he follows Keith into his bedroom. It's been like this for the past couple weeks. Keith never gave him a reason for making Lance sleep in his room but Lance isn't an idiot. He knows.

Keith is scared Lance will try to kill himself again while Keith is asleep.

As if sleeping in the same room will keep him from doing it. But Lance can't say that. It would just make Keith more alert and strict about what Lance gets to do and when he does it. God forbid he puts cameras in the house to keep an eye on him. Lance can't let that happen.

Crawling into bed with Chuleta at his side he pulls a blanket over his shoulder and turns on the bedside lamp. Chuleta is good when it comes to bedtime. She lays behind his knees and props her head up on tonight. Lance has to sit up and lift the blanket for her as she scratches at it. She has learned to ask to be under the covers when it gets too cold in the room. He rolls onto his side and pulls her close kissing her head. He wishes he could fall asleep as easily as she does. Maybe he'll be reborn as -"A dog." Lance looks up at Keith and stares at him for a moment. "There's a dog outside." Lance sighs and lays back petting down her back as he shuts his eyes. Faking sleep. Until it's no longer pretending.

For once Lance wakes up before Keith does. He slips out of bed and moves to his own bedroom to grab a fresh pair of clothes before stepping into the shower. He could barely sleep last night. He kept waking up every couple hours. He's exhausted. He'll probably just fall asleep with Pidge on the couch when Keith goes to work. Or maybe he'll lay on the hammock with Chuleta. Get some sun. It'll be nice and warm.

Lance is pulled out of his thoughts by a knocking on the door. He peeks his head out of the shower curtain and sighs. Keith is awake. "Come in.." The door opens and Keith walks in. His hair is such a mess. Lance shakes his head and moves back to rinsing off his hair. He runs his fingers through it and looks down at his hands. He needs a haircut. His hair is starting to curl up again. His hair hasn't been this long since-

His eyes widen as he feels his legs weaken, he goes to grab onto the shower curtain but screams as it falls down with him. He falls onto his back and stares at Keith who is currently using the toilet. Lance screams and that makes Keith scream. Before they know it Chuleta is running into the bathroom and onto Lance getting herself all wet.

Shiro bursts into a fit of laughter and Lance glares at him still blow drying Chuleta's fur. "This isn't funny Shiro! I was humiliated!" He huffs and looks down at his dog letting her go through the back door to play around with Shiro's dog. He stands up and sits down at the table.

"What a way to start the morning...I can't wait to tell the kids about this. Maybe now they'll be less scared of you Keith." Keith throws a knife at him and glares at him as well. Shiro puts his hand up to his cheek and looks down at it. He actually cut him. Keith huffs and sits down putting a plate in front of Lance and himself. "No breakfast for me?"

"I'd feed the devil before I fed you." Lance snorts and looks down at his plate. How cute. His pancakes have a smiley face on them. But its not Friday. Lance smiles and takes a deep breath. Keith's way of apologizing for this morning. Even more cute. Lance eats while listening to the two bicker. He yawns and lays his head on the table. He shuts his eyes for just a moment.

When he opens them he finds himself in a bedroom that is not his nor is it Keith's. He sits up and looks over to his left smiling at a figure sitting at a computer desk. "Morning Pidgeon." She turns around and stands up sitting next to him on his bed. "What are you doing?" She pulls out a tablet from under his pillow and taps away.

"I'm finding new bot fighting places. You'd think we would never have to work again. On top of that I am fighting in underground fighting rings for money." Lance blinks and sits up looking over at her tablet. "I make more money in one day than Iverson made in a week." Lance leans his head on her shoulder and sighs.

"Just be careful, know when its time to run away. Your hot brother will kill me if he finds out I knew about this and didn't tell him and you got hurt." Pidge glares at him and shoves him playfully.

"Stop calling him hot, he looks just like me. Am I hot too then Lance?"

"Definitely cutie pie." Lance snorts as Pidge turns her face away. Of course he saw those blushing cheeks. "What's the plan for today Pidge? Your mom need my help with anything?" She shakes her head and turns back to him. Typing away. He rolls onto his side and wraps an arm around her. She rests her hand on his head and runs her fingers through his hair only to stop and look down at him.

"Your hair is longer...Need me to cut it?" He looks up and shrugs. "Okay...I'll do it when you're really awake. For now...Just go to sleep. It's not even noon. If you fall asleep again I'll wake you up for lunch."

"Thanks Pidgeon.."


End file.
